System, method and vehicle

Abstract

The disclosure pertains to a system for a vehicle, wherein the system includes: a first sensor that is configured to acquire first sensor data that represent an image of an interior of the vehicle; a second sensor that is configured to acquire second sensor data that represent the interior of the vehicle based on another observable parameter different to the first sensor data; and circuitry that is configured to: determine a number of occupants of the vehicle based on at least one of the first sensor data and the second sensor data; receive status information that indicates a status of the vehicle; and determine, based on the status information, on the determined number of occupants, and on at least one of the first and second sensor data, occupancy information that indicates a state of an occupant of the vehicle.

Description

[0001] Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 1

[0002] SYSTEM, METHOD AND VEHICLE

[0003] TECHNICAL FIELD

[0004] The present disclosure generally pertains to a system, a method and a vehicle.

[0005] TECHNICAL BACKGROUND

[0006] It is generally known to detect an occupant in a vehicle. For example, a weight sensor in a seat of the vehicle may detect an occupant who is sitting on the seat. Further, for example, a camera may detect an occupant in the vehicle.

[0007] Although there exist techniques for occupancy detection in a vehicle, it is generally desirable to provide an improved system, method and vehicle.

[0008] SUMMARY

[0009] According to a first aspect, the disclosure provides a system for a vehicle, wherein the system includes:

[0010] a first sensor that is configured to acquire first sensor data that represent an image of an interior of the vehicle;

[0011] a second sensor that is configured to acquire second sensor data that represent the interior of the vehicle based on another observable parameter different to the first sensor data; and circuitry configured to:

[0012] determine a number of occupants of the vehicle based on at least one of the first sensor data and the second sensor data;

[0013] receive status information that indicates a status of the vehicle; and determine, based on the status information, on the determined number of occupants, and on at least one of the first and second sensor data, occupancy information that indicates a state of an occupant of the vehicle.

[0014] According to a second aspect, the disclosure provides a method for a vehicle, wherein the method includes:

[0015] acquiring, from a first sensor, first sensor data that represent an image of an interior of the vehicle;

[0016] acquiring, from a second sensor, second sensor data that represent the interior of the vehicle based on another observable parameter different to the first sensor data;

[0017] determining a number of occupants of the vehicle based on at least one of the first sensor data and the second sensor data;Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 2

[0018] receiving status information that indicates a status of the vehicle; and

[0019] determining, based on the status information, on the determined number of occupants, and on at least one of the first and second sensor data, occupancy information that indicates a state of an occupant of the vehicle.

[0020] According to a third aspect, the disclosure provides a vehicle that includes:

[0021] a seat; and

[0022] the system of the first aspect;

[0023] wherein the determining of the number of occupants includes detecting whether an occupant is sitting on the seat.

[0024] Further aspects are set forth in the dependent claims, the drawings and the following description.

[0025] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] Embodiments are explained by way of example with respect to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0027] Fig. 1 illustrates an embodiment of a vehicle;

[0028] Fig. 2 illustrates an embodiment of an image sensor;

[0029] Fig. 3 illustrates an embodiment of a second sensor;

[0030] Fig. 4 illustrates an embodiment of a method for a vehicle;

[0031] Fig. 5 illustrates a first embodiment of an arrangement of an image sensor and a radar sensor in a vehicle;

[0032] Fig. 6 illustrates a second embodiment of an arrangement of image sensors and a radar sensor in a vehicle;

[0033] Fig. 7 illustrates a third embodiment of an arrangement of an image sensor and a radar sensor in a vehicle;

[0034] Fig. 8 illustrates an embodiment of an arrangement of weight sensors and seatbelt sensors in a vehicle; and

[0035] Fig. 9 illustrates an embodiment of a general-purpose computer.

[0036] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

[0037] Before a detailed description of the embodiments under reference of Fig. 1 is given, general explanations are made.Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 3

[0038] As mentioned in the outset, an occupant in a vehicle may be detected. For example, a weight sensor in a seat of the vehicle may detect an occupant who is sitting on the seat. Further, for example, a camera may detect an occupant in the vehicle.

[0039] Generally, various sensors and technologies are available for determining in-cabin occupancy. For example, a pressure sensor (e.g., one pressure sensor) or a weight sensor (e.g., four or more weight sensors, more precise) may determine if someone is sitting in a particular seat or not. Benefits of a pressure / weight sensor may include that the sensor may be accurate in determining if a seat is occupied or not, that the sensor may provide real-time information about seat occupancy, and / or that the sensor may be relatively simple and cost-effective to implement. However, in some instances, a pressure / weight sensor may not be able to detect small objects (e.g., baby seat or carrier or pets) on a seat, and / or the sensor may be affected by external factors like luggage or other items placed on the seat.

[0040] For example, a seatbelt sensor may detect if a seatbelt is fastened or not. Benefits of a seatbelt sensor may include that the sensor may indirectly indicate if a seat is occupied or not, that the sensor may be integrated with a seatbelt reminder system for safety purposes, and / or that the sensor may be relatively reliable and widely used in vehicles. However, in some instances, a seatbelt sensor may not provide direct information about a number of occupants or their positions, and / or the sensor may not detect occupants who are not wearing seatbelts.

[0041] For example, a Red-Green-Blue-(RGB)-infrared-(IR) camera and / or a time-of-flight (ToF) camera may allow a computer vision algorithm to analyze a camera feed to identify and track an individual inside the cabin. Benefits of an RGB-IR camera and / or ToF camera may include that the camera may provide detailed information about a number of occupants and their positions, that the camera may be used for other purposes like driver monitoring or gesture recognition, and / or that the camera may allow an advanced computer vision algorithm to improve accuracy. However, in some instances, an RGB-IR and / or ToF camera may cause privacy concerns due to capturing visual data, the camera may be affected by occlusions, the camera may require processing power and thus increase a system complexity, and / or the camera may require an external light source.

[0042] For example, a radar and / or ultrasonic sensor may detect an occupant based on a reflected radar and / or ultrasonic signal. Benefits of a radar and / or ultrasonic sensor may include that the sensor may detect a presence of an occupant regardless of their size or weight, that the sensor may be used to cover larger areas within the cabin, that the sensor may be relatively reliable and unaffected by external factors like luggage, and / or that the sensor may be unaffected by lightingOur ref.: 250057EPWOP 4

[0043] conditions. However, in some instances, a radar and / or ultrasonic sensor may have limitations in accurately determining an exact position of an occupant, and / or the sensor may be affected by ambient noise or interference.

[0044] For example, an IR sensor may detect a heat signature of an occupant inside the cabin. Benefits of an IR sensor may include that the sensor may work in various lighting conditions, and / or that the sensor may be relatively reliable and unaffected by external factors. However, in some instances, an IR sensor may have limitations in accurately determining an exact position of an occupant, and / or the sensor may be affected by external heat sources or drafts.

[0045] For example, as mentioned, a radar / ultrasonic sensor may rely on detecting an occupant based on a reflected radar / ultrasonic signal. It has been recognized that there remain technical challenges in order to improve an accuracy and / or reliability of obtained occupancy information from a radar sensor (e.g., based on ultra-wide band (UWB) radar), to address any potential limitations or interference that may affect a performance of a radar sensor, to take advantage of radar based occupancy detection of an area that is occluded from computer vision based detection, and / or to exactly determine an exact position of occupants.

[0046] It has also been recognized that another sensor (e.g., a radar sensor) may be used as a camera fallback. For example, if the camera ceased to function correctly or if there is strong occlusion in a field of view of the camera, a three-dimensional (3D) depth may be determined based on radar for features like occupancy etc. Thus, a sensor redundancy may be provided for occupancy detection.

[0047] It has further been recognized that a radar sensor may be used for surveillance. For example, a low energy radar sensor may be used to detect an activity in a car when the car is locked and closed. For example, upon radar-based trigger activity detection, an RGB-IR camera may be started and may record a live stream for surveillance. For example, the RGB-IR camera may be combined with a radar sensor in a module that may be positioned in a center of a ceiling to cover all seats.

[0048] It has further been recognized that occupant counting at pre / post-crash timings may be used to facilitate post-crash rescue based on an emergency call (e.g., SOS signal) that may be sent postcrash.

[0049] Consequently, some embodiments of the present disclosure pertain to a system for a vehicle, wherein the system includes:

[0050] a first sensor that is configured to acquire first sensor data that represent an image of an interior of the vehicle;Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 5

[0051] a second sensor that is configured to acquire second sensor data that represent the interior of the vehicle based on another observable parameter different to the first sensor data; and circuitry that is configured to:

[0052] determine a number of occupants of the vehicle based on at least one of the first sensor data and the second sensor data;

[0053] receive status information that indicates a status of the vehicle; and determine, based on the status information, on the determined number of occupants, and on at least one of the first and second sensor data, occupancy information that indicates a state of an occupant of the vehicle.

[0054] The vehicle may include any means of transport, e.g., a car, an omnibus, a truck, a tractor, a motorbike, a train, a cable car, an airplane, a helicopter, an electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, a spacecraft, a boat, a submarine, etc.

[0055] The first sensor may be configured as a camera that may capture incident light. The camera may focus the incident light with an optical element (e.g., lens, mirror, etc.) onto an array of photosensitive elements. The photosensitive elements may convert the light into electrical signals. The camera may generate the first sensor data based on the electrical signals from the photosensitive elements. The incident light may enter the vehicle through a window and / or may be generated within the vehicle. For example, the incident light may be based on sunlight, on daylight, on artificial light from outside the vehicle, on artificial light within the vehicle, and / or on any other suitable light source. The incident light may include light that has been reflected by an occupant of the vehicle and / or by an interior of the vehicle.

[0056] The interior of the vehicle may include a seat, a seatbelt and / or any other portion of a cabin of the vehicle in which an occupant may be present.

[0057] The second sensor may be configured as another sensor than a camera. The other observable parameter may be a physical parameter that may differ from the light that is captured by the first sensor. By sensing the interior or the vehicle with the first sensor and with the second sensor and, thus, based on different observable parameters, a redundancy of sensors may be increased, and benefits of both the first and the second sensor may be provided. For example, the second sensor may include a radar sensor, an ultrasonic sensor, a weight sensor, a pressure sensor, a seatbelt sensor, a ToF sensor, an IR sensor, or the like.

[0058] The circuitry may use data from one sensor (e.g., the first or second sensor) to reinforce data from the other sensor (e.g., the second or first sensor, respectively) to provide improved detection.Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 6

[0059] Further, for example, the first sensor may be of a direct sensing type such as vision and / or radar. The second sensor may be of an indirect sensing type, e.g., may infer information from a measurement (weight, pressure, etc., as described above).

[0060] The circuitry may include a processing portion (e.g., a microprocessor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), a tensor processing unit (TPU), or any other suitable device) that is configured to execute software and / or firmware instructions, a storage portion (e.g., based on flash memory (e.g. a solid-state disk (SSD)), magnetic memory (e.g., a hard-disk drive (HDD)), optical memory, dynamic random-access memory (DRAM), synchronous dynamic random-access memory (SDRAM), or the like) that is configured to store data used and / or generated by the processing portion, and a communication portion (based on, e.g., Controller Area Network (CAN), FlexRay, Time-Triggered Protocol (TTP), Local Interconnect Network (LIN), Media Oriented Systems Transport (MOST), Single Edge Nibble Transmission (SENT), Ethernet, Universal Storage Bus (USB), Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI), serial port (RS-232), parallel port (IEEE 1284), wireless local area network (WLAN; e.g., the IEEE 802.11 family (Wi-Fi)), Bluetooth, or the like) that is configured to receive data (e.g., the first and second sensor data) and to transmit data (e.g., the determined number of occupants and / or the determined status information). The circuitry may be configured as a general-purpose computer as described with respect to Fig. 9.

[0061] A communication connection between the circuitry, the first sensor and / or the second sensor may be based on CAN, FlexRay, TTP, LIN, MOST, SENT, Ethernet, USB, PCI, serial port, parallel port, WLAN, Bluetooth, or the like.

[0062] The determining of the number of occupants may be based on applying a threshold to the first and / or second sensor data, on a classic analysis of the first and / or second sensor data, on a machine learning algorithm (e.g., artificial neural network (ANN), such as feedforward neural network (FNN), a convolutional neural network (CNN), a recurrent neural network (RNN), a long short-term memory (LSTM), a gated recurrent unit (GRU), a radial basis function neural network (RBFNN), a variational autoencoder (VAE), a generative adversarial network (GAN), a self-organizing map (SOM), a transformer network, a spiking neural network (SNN), or any other suitable ANN architecture). For example, the determining of the number of occupants may include detecting an occupant based on an image processing algorithm (e.g., classification, feature extraction, pattern recognition, or the like). For example, the determining of the numberOur ref.: 250057EPWOP 7

[0063] of occupants may include detecting an occupant based on an active state of the second sensor, wherein a position of the second sensor may be known.

[0064] The status of the vehicle may correspond to an operation mode and / or to a physical state of the vehicle. For example, the status may indicate that the vehicle is driving, that the vehicle is parked, that an accident has occurred to the vehicle, that an airbag of the vehicle has been deployed, that a door of the vehicle is open, closed, locked or not locked, that an emergency button of the vehicle has been activated, or the like.

[0065] The circuitry may receive (e.g., obtain, acquire, read, etc.) the status information from a tachometer, from an engine control unit, from an accelerometer (e.g., inertial mass unit (IMU)), from an impact sensor, from a door control unit, from an emergency communication unit, and / or from any other suitable unit (e.g., electronic control unit (ECU)).

[0066] The occupancy information may indicate additional information with regard to an occupant of the vehicle beyond a number of occupants. For example, the occupancy information may allow a more targeted rescue measure in case of emergency (e.g., in case of an accident of the vehicle). For example, based on the occupancy information, a specialized rescue service and / or a specific rescue equipment may be deployed.

[0067] The circuitry may determine the occupancy information based on the status information. For example, the circuitry may determine the occupancy information when the status information indicates a predetermined status of the vehicle. Further, for example, the circuitry may determine a predetermined aspect of the status information when the status information indicates a predetermined status of the vehicle. The circuitry may also determine the occupancy information upon a change of the status information.

[0068] The circuitry may determine the occupancy information for each detected occupant of the vehicle, for an occupant at a predetermined position in the vehicle (e.g., driver seat, front seat, rear seat, etc.), for a predetermined number of occupants, etc. The circuitry may determine, based on the determined number of occupants, which aspect of the occupancy information to determine.

[0069] The determining of the occupancy information may be based on a further analysis of the first and / or second sensor data, for example, based on conventional analysis, on a simulation, on a machine learning model (as described above), or the like. The further analysis may require more computational resources and / or may take more time than the determining of the number of occupants. Therefore, the circuitry may generate the occupancy information (or a specific aspectOur ref.: 250057EPWOP 8

[0070] of the occupancy information) only if the status information indicates a specific status of the vehicle.

[0071] The circuitry may further determine a confidence (e.g., degree of reliability, consistency with sensor data, statistical “extremeness”, quantile, etc.) of one or more aspects of the occupancy information and may include the determined confidence in the occupancy information. The confidence may be represented as confidence data such as a score, range, quantum, or the like. The confidence may be based on a sensor state in case of an accident. Thus, a receiver of the occupancy information may obtain, with the confidence, an estimate of how reliable an aspect of the occupancy information is.

[0072] For example, in an accident (e.g., crash) of the vehicle, the first sensor may be damaged, may be displaced, may be occluded by an airbag, etc. Likewise, the second sensor may be damaged, displaced and / or occluded in an accident. The circuitry may determine, e.g., after an accident, whether the first and / or the second sensor is still functional, and may indicate, with the confidence, whether the circuitry has determined that the first and / or second sensor is functional and, possibly, to what degree of probability this determination is considered to be reliable.

[0073] In some embodiments, the first sensor is configured to acquire the first sensor data based on infrared (IR) light.

[0074] The first sensor may be configured as an IR imaging sensor, and the photosensitive elements of the first sensor may be configured to convert incident IR light into electrical signals. The IR light may origin from a light source (e.g., a light-emitting diode (LED), light bulb, sun, etc.) and / or may origin as thermal radiation from an occupant and / or from the interior of the vehicle.

[0075] The IR light may have a longer wavelength than visible light. For example, the IR light may have a wavelength between 700 nm and 1 mm and / or may have a frequency between 300 GHz and 430 THz, without limiting the disclosure to these intervals. For example, the first sensor may be configured to detect near-infrared (NIR; e.g., with a wavelength between 0.75 and 1.4 pm and / or a frequency between 214 and 400 THz), short-wavelength infrared (SWIR; e.g., with a wavelength between 1.4 and 3 pm and / or a frequency between 100 and 214 THz), midwavelength infrared (MWIR; e.g., with a wavelength between 3 and 8 pm and / or a frequency between 37 and 100 THZ), long-wavelength infrared (LWIR; e.g., with a wavelength between 8 and 15 pm and / or a frequency between 20 and 37 THz) and / or far-infrared (FIR; e.g., with a wavelength between 15 and 1,000 pm and / or a frequency between 0.3 and 20 THz).

[0076] The first sensor may also be configured as a time-of-flight (ToF) sensor (e.g., direct ToF (dToF) and / or indirect ToF (iToF)) for obtaining a three-dimensional (3D) map of the interior of theOur ref.: 250057EPWOP 9

[0077] vehicle. For example, the first sensor may measure a roundtrip time of an emitted IR pulse (e.g., by photon counting with a single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD) in the case of dToF and / or by demodulating a received IR pulse signal with current-assisted photonic demodulator (CAPD)), and may determine a distance based on the measured roundtrip time.

[0078] Acquiring the first sensor data based on IR light may allow capturing the image of the interior of the vehicle without bothering an occupant (e.g., driver of the vehicle) with visible light, e.g., without distracting the driver from driving and / or without dazzling the driver at low-light conditions (e.g., when driving at night or in a tunnel), thus increasing a driving safety.

[0079] In some embodiments, the first sensor is configured to acquire the first sensor data based on visible light.

[0080] The visible light may be visible to a human eye, e.g., may have a wavelength between 380 nm and 700 nm.

[0081] The first sensor may be configured as an image sensor, e.g., a grayscale image sensor and / or a Red-Green-Blue (RGB) sensor, e.g., with corresponding color filters arranged in front of the photosensitive elements.

[0082] The first sensor may acquire the first image data at daylight and / or at artificial light. A detailedness of the first sensor data may depend on light conditions in the vehicle and / or on characteristics of the first sensor. For example, the first sensor data may indicate a color, a contour, a pattern etc. of the interior and / or of an occupant of the vehicle.

[0083] In some embodiments, the second sensor is configured to acquire the second sensor data based on radar.

[0084] The second sensor may include a radar sensor based on, e.g., an ultra- wide band (UWB) radar, a pulsed radar, a continuous wave (CW) radar, a Doppler radar, a phased array, etc.

[0085] The second sensor data based on radar may indicate a 3D map of the interior of the vehicle. For example, in the case of Doppler radar, the second sensor data may indicate movements (e.g., including micromovements such as breathing and / or a heartbeat) in the interior of the vehicle and, thus, possibly indicate presence of an occupant.

[0086] In some embodiment, the second sensor is configured to acquire the second sensor data based on a weight on a seat of the vehicle.

[0087] The second sensor may be configured as a pressure sensor and / or as a weight sensor (e.g., based on capacitive sensing and / or on a piezoelectric effect). The second sensor may be provided in theOur ref.: 250057EPWOP 10

[0088] seat such that the second sensor may detect a gravitational force of an occupant who is sitting on the seat.

[0089] The gravitational force detected by the second sensor may correspond to a weight of the occupant (e.g., linearly and / or biased by an elasticity of the seat). For example, the second sensor and / or the circuitry may determine the detected gravitational force with a predetermined weight threshold. If the detected gravitational force exceeds the predetermined weight threshold, the circuitry may determine that an occupant is sitting on the seat.

[0090] In some embodiments, the second sensor is configured to acquire the second sensor data based on detecting whether a seatbelt is buckled.

[0091] The second sensor may be configured as a seatbelt sensor. For example, the second sensor may be provided in a buckle, and, upon buckling the seatbelt, a tongue of the seatbelt may activate the second sensor, e.g., by pressing a button, by closing a switch, by closing a circuit, or the like. For example, an engagement of a latch in a buckle may activate the second sensor.

[0092] When the second sensor data indicate that the seatbelt is buckled, the circuitry may determine that an occupant is sitting on a corresponding seat.

[0093] In some embodiments, the occupancy information includes an indication of a type of passenger. For example, the indication of the type of passenger may label a detected occupant with metadata. As mentioned, the circuitry may also determine a confidence (e.g., based on a measured state of a sensor (e.g., sensor failure, occlusion, blockage, or the like) for the metadata. For example, the type of passenger may include an adult, a child, an object, an animal, etc. For example, the type of passenger may include a weight, a gender, an age, an upper body size and / or any other suitable metrics of the occupant. Some metrics may be categorised into ranges (for example, 45kg to 50kg) rather than representing discrete values. A difference between an upper and a lower value may or may not be equal for any range, for example <10kg, 10kg to 15kg, 15kg to 25kg, or any other suitable range.

[0094] For example, the circuitry may determine the indication of the type of passenger based on machine vision (e.g., inputting at least a portion of the first sensor data into an ANN) and / or based on radar-based or weight-based second sensor data.

[0095] For example, the type of passenger may be used for controlling an airbag and / or a belt pretensioner in case of an accident, and / or, in case of an emergency call, for facilitating a determination of necessary rescue equipment.Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 11

[0096] In some embodiments, the occupancy information includes an indication of whether the occupant is wearing a seatbelt.

[0097] A determination of whether the occupant is wearing a seatbelt may be based on the first sensor data and / or on second sensor data from a seatbelt sensor.

[0098] The indication of whether the occupant is wearing a seatbelt may be used for controlling a warning alert, for controlling an airbag and / or belt pretensioner, and / or for providing an estimation of a severeness of an accident in case of an emergency call.

[0099] In some embodiments, the occupancy information includes an indication of whether the occupant is sitting in a child seat.

[0100] The determination of whether the occupant is sitting in a child seat may be based on the first sensor data, on radar-based second sensor data, on weight-based second sensor data, or the like. The circuitry may determine, based on the first and / or second sensor data, a type of child seat or a harness type for the seat.

[0101] The indication of whether the occupant is sitting in a child seat may be used for controlling an airbag and / or belt pretensioner, for facilitating a determination of necessary rescue equipment (e.g., need for pediatric emergency medicine) in case of an emergency call.

[0102] In some embodiments, the occupancy information includes an indication of an identity of the occupant.

[0103] The identity of the occupant may be determined based on the first sensor data and / or on radarbased second sensor data, e.g., based on an image of the occupant and / or on a 3D face profile of the occupant.

[0104] The identity of the occupant may be determined based on face identification, on a fingertip, on an id card, on a personalized key, on a smartcard, on a smartphone, or the like.

[0105] Based on the identity of the occupant, the circuitry may control personalized settings that are associated with the occupant (e.g., automatically adjust a seat position, a position of a steering wheel, a seatbelt height, and / or an orientation of a rear mirror). Further, based on the identity of the occupant, a multimedia system of the vehicle may attempt to connect to a smartphone of the occupant, playback a music playlist associated with the occupant, load a telephone contact list of the occupant, load an emergency contact associated with the occupant, tune in to a radio station associated with the occupant, or the like.Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 12

[0106] Further, based on the identity of the occupant, the circuitry may transmit, in an emergency call in case of an accident, personal medical information associated with the occupant, e.g., a medicament that the occupant takes and / or needs, a disease and / or disability of the occupant, an allergy of the occupant, a medical history (or part of the medical history) of the occupant, an advance healthcare directive of the occupant, or any other information that may be important and / or helpful in a medical treatment. For example, the occupant may have registered the personal medical information in advance in an emergency system of the vehicle and / or in a database that may be accessible to the circuitry. Thus, rescue personnel (e.g., emergency physician, paramedic, firefighter, etc.) may be informed about specific needs of the occupant by the personal medical information and may treat the occupant accordingly.

[0107] In some embodiments, the circuitry is configured to determine, based on the second sensor data, whether an identity of the occupant determined based on the first sensor data is reliable.

[0108] For example, the first sensor data may represent an image of an occupant. The second sensor data may be based on radar and may indicate a 3D map of the interior of the vehicle. The circuitry may determine whether a 3D profile of the occupant (e.g., of a face of the occupant), as indicated by the second sensor data, corresponds to the image of the occupant, as indicated by the first sensor data. The determining may be based on edge detection, on feature detection, on contour detection, on image registration, etc., and may be performed based on a classical algorithm and / or based on an ANN.

[0109] Thus, an anti-spoofing functionality may be provided that may detect whether a flat photograph or mask is presented to the first sensor instead of a 3D face of the occupant.

[0110] In some embodiments, the occupancy information includes an indication of a position of the occupant in the vehicle.

[0111] For example, the position of the occupant may correspond to a seat row (e.g., front row, back / rear row) of the vehicle, and / or to a specific seat (e.g., driver seat, front seat, right rear seat, middle rear seat, left rear seat, etc.). For example, the position of the occupant may correspond to a seat configuration (e.g., backward facing mid row, etc.). The seat configuration may be identifiable, for example, by cross referencing vehicle type data or a vehicle identification number (VIN) with a database containing such information.

[0112] The position of the occupant may be determined based on the first sensor data and / or based on second sensor data from a radar sensor, seatbelt sensor, weight sensor, or the like.Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 13

[0113] The indication of the position of the occupant may be used for controlling an airbag and / or belt pretensioner, and / or for providing an estimation of a severeness of an accident in case of an emergency call (e.g., in combination with an indication of an impact direction).

[0114] In some embodiments, the circuitry is configured to control the first sensor to acquire the first sensor data when the second sensor data indicate a presence of an occupant.

[0115] For example, the acquiring of the second sensor data with the second sensor may consume fewer computational resources and / or electrical power than the acquiring of the first sensor data with the first sensor.

[0116] For example, the occupancy information may be based on the first sensor data and may consume computational resources and / or electric power.

[0117] Thus, the first sensor may be kept switched off and / or in a standby mode when no occupant is detected (e.g., within the interior of the vehicle and / or at a specific portion (e.g., specific seat) of the vehicle). While the first sensor is switched off and / or in the standby mode, the second sensor may acquire second sensor data for detecting an occupant. When the second sensor data indicate that an occupant is present, the circuitry may control the first sensor to be switched on or activated and to acquire the first sensor data.

[0118] Thus, consumption of computing resources and / or electric power may be reduced.

[0119] In some embodiments, the circuitry is configured to:

[0120] determine, based on the first sensor data and on the second sensor data, a first reliability of the first sensor data and a second reliability of the second sensor data; and

[0121] determine, based on the first reliability and on the second reliability, whether to determine the number of occupants based on the first sensor data or based on the second sensor data.

[0122] For example, the first sensor may be occluded by an object (e.g., jacket, cap, pocket, sunglasses, smartphone or the like of an occupant) that may be put in front of the first sensor such that an image captured by the first sensor may not show the interior of the vehicle.

[0123] For example, in an accident (e.g., crash) of the vehicle, the first sensor may be damaged, may be displaced, may be occluded by an airbag, etc. Likewise, the second sensor may be damaged, displaced and / or occluded in an accident.

[0124] By determining the first reliability and the second reliability, the circuitry may determine whether the first and / or second sensor still acquire reliable sensor data of the interior of the vehicle (e.g., if sensor data of a same region-of-interest (ROI) can be acquired). Thus, the firstOur ref.: 250057EPWOP 14

[0125] and / or second reliability may indicate a suitability of the first and / or second sensor data for determining the number of occupants and / or for determining the occupancy information.

[0126] The first and / or second reliability may also indicate whether the first and / or second sensor is still functional. Thus, the determining of the first / second reliability may include determining an aftercrash sensor working status. The first / second reliability may be used as an indicator for determining a confidence of the determined number of occupants and / or occupancy information. For example, a re-calibration of the first and / or second sensor may be performed after an accident, and the first and / or second reliability may be determined after the re-calibration.

[0127] If the first reliability is reduced after the accident (e.g., if the first sensor is not functional anymore) and the second reliability is higher than the first reliability, the circuitry may determine the number of occupants and / or the occupancy information based on the second sensor data. However, if the second reliability is reduced after the accident (e.g., if the second sensor is not functional anymore) and the first reliability is higher than the second reliability, the circuitry may determine the number of occupants and / or the occupancy information based on the first sensor data.

[0128] The circuitry may determine the first and / or second reliability based on a difference between first and / or second sensor data acquired after an accident and predetermined test data, and / or based on a difference between first and / or second sensor data acquired after an accident and first and / or second sensor data acquired before the accident.

[0129] The circuitry may determine the first and / or second reliability by determining a plausibility of the first and / or second sensor data, e.g., by causing an ANN to determine whether the first and / or second sensor data represent an interior of a vehicle, and / or whether a portion of the first and / or second sensor is occluded. The circuitry may determine the first and / or second reliability by determining a consistency between the first and second sensor data, e.g., by determining whether a feature indicated by the first sensor data is also indicated by the second sensor data or vice versa, e.g., based on image registration and / or on an ANN.

[0130] For example, based on the first and / or second reliability, the circuitry may change to another sensor, from among the first sensor and the second sensor, for determining the number of occupants and / or for determining the occupancy information after an accident. For example, if the first sensor is occluded by an airbag, the circuitry may determine the number of occupants based on the second sensor, which may not provide an RGB image.Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 15

[0131] Thus, the sensor may switch between the first sensor and the second sensor according to the reliability information.

[0132] In some embodiments, the determining of the first reliability includes detecting a failure of the first sensor and the determining of the second reliability includes detecting a failure of the second sensor.

[0133] The failure of the first and / or second sensor may correspond to a permanent failure (e.g., damage of the sensor, e.g., caused by an accident, as described above). The failure of the first and / or second sensor may also correspond to a temporal failure (e.g., the sensor may be occluded, covered or blocked by an object (e.g., airbag)), such that a proper function of the sensor may be restored (e.g., when the object is removed).

[0134] In some embodiments, the circuitry is configured to, if the status information indicates an accident, initiate an emergency call and transmit, in the emergency call, the determined number of occupants and the determined occupancy information.

[0135] The emergency call may correspond to an SOS signal, eCall, advanced eCall or the like. The emergency call may be transmitted via a mobile telecommunications system such as Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), High Speed Packet Access (HSPA), Long Term Evolution (LTE), New Radio (NR), or the like, and / or via a satellite communications system such as Iridium, Thuraya, Globalstar, Inmarsat, Starlink, Eutelsat, OneWeb, “Infrastructure for Resilience, Interconnectivity and Security by Satellite” (IRIS2), or the like. However, the present disclosure is not limited to these communication systems; the skilled person may find further ways of transmitting the emergency call.

[0136] The emergency call may be transmitted as audio data (e.g., as a recorded message and / or artificial voice), as text data (e.g., Short Message Service (SMS), Rich Communication Services (RCS), E-Mail, Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) request, or the like; e.g., in natural language (for example, based on a template and / or on a generative ANN), in a structured format such as Extensible Markup Language (XML), JavaScript Object Notation (JSON), multipart / form-data, application / x-www-form-urlencoded, an INI format, TOML, YAML, or the like), and / or as binary data (e.g., Protocol Buffers, Efficient XML Interchange (EXI), etc.).

[0137] The emergency call may be addressed to an emergency hotline (e.g., 112, 911, etc.), a publicsafety answering point (PSAP) and / or to a predetermined contact.Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 16

[0138] By automatically initiating the emergency call when the status information indicates an accident (e.g., crash, car accident, collision, or the like), the emergency call may be initiated independently from a condition of an occupant of the vehicle, e.g., even if the occupant is severely injured such that he cannot initiate an emergency call and / or if the occupant is trapped due to a deformation of the vehicle such that he cannot reach a button for initiating an emergency call. Thus, by the automatic emergency call (e.g., by initiating the emergency call by the circuitry), help (e.g., rescue service, fire brigade, etc.) may be organized such that an occupant of the vehicle may be rescued.

[0139] By transmitting, in the emergency call, the determined number of occupants and / or the determined occupancy information, a recipient of the emergency call may be informed about a severeness of the accident and / or of necessary rescue equipment (e.g., number of rescue vehicles, specialized rescue service (e.g., pediatric emergency medicine if a child is involved in the accident), rescue tools (e.g., hydraulic rescue cutter / spreader if the vehicle is deformed), or the like).

[0140] Thus, the emergency call may facilitate a rescue operation after the accident.

[0141] The circuitry may trigger initiation of the emergency call automatically based on the occupancy information (e.g., metadata of at least one occupant), based on the status information, or the like. In some embodiments, the system further includes a buffer memory; and the circuitry is configured to:

[0142] write the determined number of occupants and the determined occupancy information to the buffer memory at a predetermined rate; and

[0143] transmit, in the emergency call, a latest number of occupants and latest occupancy information from the buffer memory.

[0144] The buffer memory may be based on DRAM, SDRAM, flash memory, or any other suitable type of memory.

[0145] The writing of the determined number of occupants and of the determined occupancy information to the buffer memory may include transmitting the determined number of occupants and the determined occupancy information to the buffer memory and controlling the buffer memory to store the determined number of occupants and the determined occupancy information.

[0146] The circuitry may determine the determined number of occupants and the determined occupancy information at the predetermined rate and then write them to the buffer memory.Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 17

[0147] The predetermined rate may be any suitable rate, e.g., every second, every five seconds, every 30 seconds, every minute, every five minutes, or any other suitable rate. Thus, the buffer memory may hold a current value of the number of occupants and of the occupancy information, e.g., while the vehicle is being operated (e.g., according to the status information).

[0148] Therefore, if an accident occurs, the circuitry may be able to transmit, in the emergency call, the number of occupants and the occupancy information without having to acquire further first and / or second sensor data, e.g., even if the first and / or second sensor are not functional anymore after the accident.

[0149] In some embodiments, the circuitry is further configured to:

[0150] determine, based on the first and second sensor data, accident information that indicates an impact of the accident; and

[0151] transmit the accident information in the emergency call.

[0152] The circuitry may determine the accident information when the status information indicates that an accident (e.g., crash, car accident, collision, or the like) has occurred. The accident information may indicate a consequence of the accident and / or a change in a state of the vehicle, of the first and / or second sensor, and / or of an occupant of the vehicle that has been caused by the accident and / or that has occurred at a time of the accident.

[0153] The accident information may, for example, include a record of acceleration data of the vehicle for ten seconds before the accident. The accident information may also include an indication of a direction of an impact (e.g., front, rear, side, etc.). The impact may correspond to a degree of deceleration or deflection from a course of travel which is not consistent with a steering operation.

[0154] By transmitting the accident information in the emergency call, the recipient of the emergency call may be informed about a severeness of the accident and / or of necessary rescue equipment (e.g., number of rescue vehicles, specialized rescue service (e.g., pediatric emergency medicine if a child is involved in the accident), rescue tools (e.g., hydraulic rescue cutter / spreader if the vehicle is deformed), or the like).

[0155] In some embodiments, the accident information includes medical information of an occupant of the vehicle.

[0156] The medical information may indicate a medical state of the occupant, e.g., an injury of the occupant (e.g., whether the occupant is conscious, whether (and / or how heavily) the occupant isOur ref.: 250057EPWOP 18

[0157] bleeding, whether the occupant has a broken bone, etc.), a pulse rate of the occupant, a breathing rate of the occupant, or the like.

[0158] The circuitry may determine the medical information based on the first sensor data and / or the second sensor data (e.g., based on a 3D map acquired by radar, ToF, ultrasonic, etc.), for example, based on image recognition, based on an analysis of a movement of the occupant, etc. The circuitry may determine the medical information based on an ANN that is trained (e.g., based on simulation data and / or based on sensor data from previous accidents) to determine medial information of an occupant of a vehicle.

[0159] The medical information may include an indication that the medical information has been automatically generated and might be inaccurate. The medical information may also include an indication of a confidence of the medial information, as described above with respect to the confidence of the occupancy information.

[0160] Thus, a rescue service may be informed about the (estimated) medical state of the occupant, such that a rescue operation may be facilitated.

[0161] A portion of the accident information that corresponds to medical information of an occupant may also correspond to a portion of the occupancy information.

[0162] In some embodiments, the accident information includes deformation information of the vehicle. The deformation information may indicate that a roof, a door, a floor, or the like of the vehicle is deformed, that a window of the vehicle is broken, that a seat of the vehicle is displaced, or the like.

[0163] The circuitry may determine the deformation information based on the first sensor data and / or the second sensor data (e.g., based on a 3D map acquired by radar, ToF, ultrasonic, etc.), for example, based on image recognition, based on a 3D reconstruction of the interior of the vehicle, etc. The circuitry may determine the deformation information based on internal car sensors from an interior / exterior frame of the car and / or based on an ANN that is trained to determine deformation information based on the first and / or second sensor data (e.g., based on simulated data and / or based on sensor data from previous accidents).

[0164] A rescue service may learn from the deformation information what technical equipment is needed for rescuing the occupant and / or what degree of severity of an injury of the occupant may be expected. For example, the determining of the deformation information may allow an aftercrash detection of a structural change of the vehicle (e.g., a broken window and / or a cabin deformation, which may indicate that special freeing means may be necessary).Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 19

[0165] The circuitry may also determine, based on the first and / or second sensor data, whether an airbag has been deployed (e.g., which airbag at which position in the car), such that rescue personnel may be warned whether to pay attention to an undeployed airbag.

[0166] Thus, a rescue operation may be facilitated by transmitting the deformation information in the emergency call.

[0167] In some embodiments, the accident information includes reliability information of the first sensor. In some embodiments, the accident information includes reliability information of the second sensor.

[0168] The reliability information of the first and / or second sensor may indicate the first and / or second reliability, as described above. Thus, a recipient of the emergency call may learn from the reliability information what further information might still be transmitted in the emergency call (e.g., because a corresponding sensor is still functional) and / or what further information cannot be determined (e.g., because a corresponding sensor is not functional).

[0169] In some embodiments, the circuitry is configured to:

[0170] transmit, in a first stage of the emergency call, the number of occupants and the determined occupancy information before the determination of the accident information is completed;

[0171] complete the determination of the accident information; and

[0172] transmit, in a second stage of the emergency call, the determined accident information. For example, determining the accident information may require some time, for example, due to heavy computations (e.g., executing an ANN, fitting a function, etc.), due to slow data acquisition (e.g., necessity to observe the occupant for a certain amount of time and / or to acquire first and / or second sensor data at several points in time, etc.), or the like.

[0173] Thus, the circuitry may transmit, in the first stage, information that is available in the first stage, such as the number of occupants and the occupancy information (which may, for example, be stored in a buffer memory, as described above, such that the circuitry may obtain the number of occupants and the occupancy information from the buffer memory without any further sensor data acquisition).

[0174] The completing of the determination of the accident information may include acquiring further first and / or second sensor data and / or performing (possibly resource intensive) processing of the first and / or second sensor data.Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 20

[0175] The first and second stages of the emergency call may correspond to different portions (e.g., time intervals) of the emergency call. For example, the first stage may correspond to information that is transmitted at a beginning of the emergency call, and the second stage may correspond to information that may not be available at a beginning of the emergency call. For example, if the accident information is not available when the first stage (e.g., including the transmitting of the number of occupants and of the occupancy information) is completed, the circuitry may pause the emergency call and may resume the emergency call when the accident information is available.

[0176] Thus, information that is available at a beginning of the emergency call may be transmitted earlier, such that a rescue operation may be initiated, and accident information that is available only after an initialization of the emergency call may be transmitted when it is available.

[0177] Therefore, a delay of a rescue operation may be avoided.

[0178] Some embodiments pertain to a system for a vehicle, wherein the system includes:

[0179] a first sensor that is configured to acquire first sensor data that represent an image of an interior of the vehicle; and

[0180] circuitry that is configured to:

[0181] receive the first sensor data from the first sensor;

[0182] receive, from a second sensor that acquires second sensor data that represent the interior of the vehicle based on another observable parameter different to the first sensor data, the second sensor data;

[0183] determine a number of occupants of the vehicle based on at least one of the first sensor data and the second sensor data;

[0184] receive status information that indicates a status of the vehicle; and determine, based on the status information, on the determined number of occupants, and on at least one of the first and second sensor data, occupancy information that indicates a state of an occupant of the vehicle.

[0185] The system may have any feature as described above with respect to embodiments of the system. Some embodiments pertain to circuitry that is configured to:

[0186] acquire, with a first sensor, first sensor data that represent an image of an interior of a vehicle;

[0187] acquire, from a second sensor, second sensor data that represent the interior of the vehicle based on another observable parameter than the first sensor data;

[0188] determine a number of occupants of the vehicle based on both of the first sensor data andOur ref.: 250057EPWOP 21

[0189] the second sensor data and further based on confidence data in both of the first sensor data and the second sensor data; and

[0190] output the number of occupants to a non-transitory data store which provides source data for the assembling of emergency signaling information.

[0191] The circuitry may have any feature as described above with respect to the circuitry in the embodiments of the system. For example, the circuitry may correspond to the circuitry described above for the embodiments of the system.

[0192] Some embodiments pertain to a method for a vehicle, wherein the method includes:

[0193] acquiring, from a first sensor, first sensor data that represent an image of an interior of the vehicle;

[0194] acquiring, from a second sensor, second sensor data that represent the interior of the vehicle based on another observable parameter different to the first sensor data;

[0195] determining a number of occupants of the vehicle based on at least one of the first sensor data and the second sensor data;

[0196] receiving status information that indicates a status of the vehicle; and

[0197] determining, based on the status information, on the determined number of occupants, and on at least one of the first and second sensor data, occupancy information that indicates a state of an occupant of the vehicle.

[0198] Some embodiments pertain to a method that includes:

[0199] acquiring, with a first sensor, first sensor data that represent an image of an interior of a vehicle;

[0200] acquiring, from a second sensor, second sensor data that represent the interior of the vehicle based on another observable parameter than the first sensor data;

[0201] determining, by circuitry, a number of occupants of the vehicle based on both of the first sensor data and the second sensor data and further based on confidence data in both of the first sensor data and the second sensor data; and

[0202] outputting the number of occupants to a non-transitory data store which provides source data for the assembling of emergency signaling information.

[0203] The methods may correspond to processing performed by the system (including the first sensor, the second sensor and the circuitry) and / or by the circuitry described above, and the system and / or circuitry may be configured to perform the method. The method may have a corresponding feature for each feature described above with respect to the system and / or to the circuitry.Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 22

[0204] Some embodiments pertain to a vehicle that includes a seat and the system of any one of the embodiments described above, wherein the determining of the number of occupants includes detecting whether an occupant is sitting on the seat.

[0205] As mentioned, the vehicle may include any means of transport, e.g., a car, an omnibus, a truck, a tractor, a motorbike, a train, a cable car, an airplane, a helicopter, an electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, a spacecraft, a boat, a submarine, etc.

[0206] The seat may correspond to a seat for an occupant, e.g., an occupant of the vehicle may be sitting on the seat. The seat may be arranged in an interior of the vehicle. The seat may be configured as a driver seat, a front seat, a back seat (e.g., right back seat, middle back seat, left back seat, etc.), or any other seat.

[0207] When the circuitry detects that an occupant is sitting on the seat (e.g., based on the first and / or second sensor data), the circuitry may increment (e.g., increase by one) a value of the number of occupants. If the vehicle includes a plurality of seats, the circuitry may detect for each seat of the vehicle (or for any suitable (e.g., predetermined) subset of seats of the vehicle) whether an occupant is sitting on the respective seat and, in case of detecting that an occupant is sitting on the seat, increment the value of the number of occupants.

[0208] The methods as described herein are also implemented in some embodiments as a computer program causing a computer and / or a processor to perform the method, when being carried out on the computer and / or processor. In some embodiments, also a non-transitory computer-readable recording medium is provided that stores therein a computer program product, which, when executed by a processor, such as the processor described above, causes the methods described herein to be performed.

[0209] Returning to Fig. 1, Fig. 1 illustrates an embodiment of a vehicle 1. The vehicle 1 includes a system 2 for a vehicle. The system 2 includes a first sensor 3 that is configured to acquire first sensor data that represent an image of an interior of the vehicle 1, a second sensor 4 that is configured to acquire second sensor data that represent the interior of the vehicle 1 based on another observable parameter than the first sensor data, and circuitry 5.

[0210] The circuitry 5 includes a processing portion 5a, a storage portion 5b and a communication portion 5c. The processing portion 5a controls a function of the circuitry 5 and performs the data processing described herein. The storage portion 5b stores firmware and software instructions that are executed by the processing portion 5a as well as data that are read and / or stored by the processing portion 5a during the processing described herein. The communication portion 5c receives the first sensor data from the first sensor 3, the second sensor data from the secondOur ref.: 250057EPWOP 23

[0211] sensor 4 and status information that indicates a status of the vehicle 1, and transmits data that have been generated by the processing portion 5a according to the processing described herein, such as a number of occupants, occupancy information, accident information, etc.

[0212] The system 2 further includes a buffer memory 6 that can be written and read by the circuitry 5 via the communication portion 5c.

[0213] The system 2 also includes a seat 7 that is arranged in the interior of the vehicle 1.

[0214] It is noted that, in some embodiments, the buffer memory 6 is omitted or included in the circuitry 5 (e.g., as part of the storage portion 5b). Also, in some embodiments, the first sensor 3 and / or the second sensor 4 are included in the circuitry 5.

[0215] Fig. 2 illustrates an embodiment of an image sensor 10. The image sensor 10 is an example of the first sensor 3 of Fig. 1 and includes a lens 11, a plurality of photosensitive elements 12 and sensor circuitry 13.

[0216] The lens 11 focuses incident infrared light 14 and visible light 15 onto the plurality of photosensitive elements 12. The photosensitive elements 12 convert the incident light 14 and 15 into electrical signals. Based on the electrical signals from the photosensitive elements 12, the sensor circuitry 13 generates and outputs image data 16 that represent an image 17.

[0217] Thus, the image sensor 10 acquires the image data 16 based on infrared light 14 and based on visible light 15.

[0218] The image data 16 are an example of the first sensor data acquired by the first sensor 3 of Fig. 1. The image sensor 10 is arranged such that the incident light 14 and 15 is received from the interior of the vehicle 1. Therefore, the image 17 is an image of the interior of the vehicle 1 and shows an occupant of the vehicle 1 when the occupant is sitting of the seat 7.

[0219] It is noted that, in some embodiments, the photosensitive elements 12 are configured to convert only one of incident infrared light 14 and incident visible light 15 into electrical signals, e.g., based on a bandpass filter, a longpass filter, a shortpass filter or the like. Thus, the image sensor 10 may acquire the image data 16 based on only one of infrared light 14 and visible light 15.

[0220] Fig. 3 illustrates an embodiment of a second sensor 20. The second sensor 20 is an example of the second sensor 4 of Fig. 1.

[0221] The second sensor 20 receives a radar signal 21 from the interior of the vehicle 1, a weight signal 22 that indicates a weight on the seat 7 of the vehicle 1, and a seatbelt signal 23 thatOur ref.: 250057EPWOP 24

[0222] indicates whether a seatbelt of the seat 7 is buckled. Based on the radar signal 21, the weight signal 22 and the seatbelt signal 23, the second sensor 20 generates and outputs second sensor data 24.

[0223] Accordingly, the second sensor 20 acquires the second sensor data 24 based on radar, based on a weight on the seat 7 of the vehicle 1, and based on detecting whether the seatbelt of the seat 7 is buckled. The radar signal 21, the weight signal 22 and the seatbelt signal 23 are different observable parameters than the infrared and visible light 14 and 15 of Fig. 2. Therefore, the second sensor data 24 represent the interior of the vehicle 1 based on another observable parameter than the first sensor data (e.g., than the image data 16).

[0224] It is noted that, in some embodiments, the second sensor 20 acquires the second sensor data 24 based on only one or two of the radar signal 21, the weight signal 22 and the seatbelt signal 23. Fig. 4 illustrates an embodiment of a method 30 for the vehicle 1. The method 30 is an example of processing performed by the circuitry 5 of Fig. 1. The circuitry 5 is configured to perform the method 30.

[0225] At 31, the circuitry 5 receives status information that indicates a status of the vehicle 1. The circuitry 5 obtains the status information at multiple points in time during the method 30, such that the circuitry 5 can detect a change of the status indicated by the status information.

[0226] At 32, the circuitry 5 determines whether the second sensor data indicate a presence of an occupant.

[0227] At 33, the circuitry 5 controls the first sensor 3 to acquire the first sensor data when it has been determined at 32 that the second sensor data indicate a presence of an occupant.

[0228] At 34, the circuitry 5 determines, based on the first sensor data and on the second sensor data, a first reliability of the first sensor data and a second reliability of the second sensor data. The circuitry 5 further determines, based on the first reliability and on the second reliability, whether to determine a number of occupants of the vehicle 1 based on the first sensor data or based on the second sensor data. The determining of the first reliability includes detecting a failure of the first sensor and the determining of the second reliability includes detecting a failure of the second sensor.

[0229] At 35, the circuitry 5 determines the number of occupants of the vehicle 1 based on at least one of the first sensor data and the second sensor data according to the determining at 34. The determining of the number of occupants includes detecting whether an occupant is sitting on the seat 7.Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 25

[0230] At 36, the circuitry 5 determines occupancy information that indicates a state of an occupant of the vehicle 1. The circuitry 5 determines the occupancy information based on the status information, on the determined number of occupants, and on at least one of the first and second sensor data.

[0231] The occupancy information includes an indication 36a of a type of a passenger, an indication 36b of whether the occupant is wearing a seatbelt, an indication 36c of whether the occupant is sitting in a child seat, an indication 36d of an identity of the occupant, and an indication 36e of a position of the occupant in the vehicle 1.

[0232] At 37, the circuitry 5 determines, based on the second sensor data, whether the identity of the occupant according to the indication 36d, which has been determined based on the first sensor data, is reliable.

[0233] At 38, the circuitry 5 writes the number of occupants, which has been determined at 35, and the occupancy information, which has been determined at 36, to the buffer memory 6 at a predetermined rate.

[0234] At 39, if the status information obtained at 31 indicates an accident, the circuitry 5 initiates an emergency call.

[0235] At 40, the circuitry 5 reads, from the buffer memory 6, a latest number of occupants and latest occupancy information. The latest number of occupants has been determined at 35 and written to the buffer memory 6 at 38. The latest occupancy information has been determined at 36 and written to the buffer memory 6 at 38.

[0236] At 41, the circuitry 5 transmits, in a first stage of the emergency call initiated at 39, the latest number of occupants and the latest occupancy information, which have been read from the buffer memory 6 at 40.

[0237] At 42, the circuitry 5 determines, based on the first and second sensor data, accident information that indicates an impact of the accident. The determination of the accident information is not completed yet in the first stage of the emergency call. The circuitry 5 completes the determination of the accident information at 42.

[0238] The accident information includes medical information 42a of an occupant of the vehicle 1, deformation information 42b of the vehicle 1, and reliability information 42c of the first sensor 3 and of the second sensor 4. The reliability information 42c indicates the first reliability and the second reliability that have been determined at 34.Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 26

[0239] At 43, the circuitry 5 transmits, in a second stage of the emergency call, the accident information that has been determined at 42.

[0240] It is noted that, in some embodiments, the processing at any one of 32, 33, 34, and 37 to 43 is optional and can be omitted or is omitted. Further, in some embodiments, the occupancy information includes only one or some of the indications 36a to 36e. Also, in some embodiments, the accident information includes only one or two of the information 42a, 42b and 42c.

[0241] Fig. 5 illustrates a first embodiment of an arrangement of an image sensor and a radar sensor in a vehicle 50. The vehicle 50 is an example of the vehicle 1 of Fig. 1 and includes an image sensor 51 and a radar sensor 52.

[0242] The image sensor 51 is an example of the first sensor 3 of Fig. 1 and of the image sensor 10 of Fig. 2, and is configured as an RGB-IR sensor that acquires the image data 16 based on infrared light 14 and based on visible light 15. The image sensor 51 is arranged at a central rearview mirror of the vehicle 50. For example, the image sensor 51 is integrated into the central rearview mirror. The image sensor 51 has a field-of-view (FoV) that is wide enough to image occupants who are sitting on a seat in any one of a front seat row and a rear seat row of the vehicle 50. The radar sensor 52 is an example of the second sensor 4 of Fig. 1 and of the second sensor 20 of Fig. 3, and acquires the second sensor data 24 based on the radar signal 21. The radar sensor 52 is arranged centrally at a ceiling of the interior of the vehicle 50 and has a FoV that is wide enough to sense occupants who are sitting on a seat in any one of the front seat row and the rear seat row.

[0243] Fig. 6 illustrates a second embodiment of an arrangement of image sensors and a radar sensor in a vehicle 60. The vehicle 60 is an example of the vehicle 1 of Fig. 1 and includes an image sensor 61 and radar sensors 62 to 66.

[0244] The image sensor 61 is an example of the first sensor 3 of Fig. 1 and of the image sensor 10 of Fig. 2, and is configured as described with respect to the image sensor 51. The image sensor 61 is arranged at a central rearview mirror of the vehicle 60 and images occupants of the vehicle 60 who are sitting on a seat in any one of a front seat row and a rear seat row of the vehicle 60. The radar sensors 62 to 66 are examples of the second sensor 4 of Fig. 1 and of the second sensor 20 of Fig. 3, and are configured as described with respect to the radar sensor 52. The radar sensor 62 is arranged at a ceiling of an interior of the vehicle 60 above a driver seat of the vehicle 60 and senses an occupant who is sitting on the driver seat. The radar sensor 63 isOur ref.: 250057EPWOP 27

[0245] arranged at the ceiling of the interior of the vehicle 60 above a front seat of the vehicle 60 and senses an occupant who is sitting on the front seat. The radar sensor 64 is arranged at the ceiling of the interior of the vehicle 60 above a left rear seat of the vehicle 60 and senses an occupant who is sitting on the left rear seat or on a middle rear seat of the vehicle 60. The radar sensor 65 is arranged at the ceiling of the interior of the vehicle 60 above a right rear seat of the vehicle 60 and senses an occupant who is sitting on the right rear seat or on the middle rear seat. The radar sensor 66 is arranged at a rear side of the interior of the vehicle 60 and senses occupants of the vehicle 60 from behind.

[0246] It is noted that, in some embodiments, only two or three of the radar sensors 62 to 66 are provided. For example, a radar sensor may be arranged in a front portion of the interior of the vehicle (e.g., at the ceiling at a center between the driver seat and the front seat) and may sense an occupant who is sitting on the driver seat or on the front seat. A further radar sensor may be arranged in a rear portion of the interior of the vehicle (e.g., at the ceiling above the middle rear seat) and may sense an occupant who is sitting in a rear seat row.

[0247] Fig. 7 illustrates a third embodiment of an arrangement of an image sensor and a radar sensor in a vehicle 70. The vehicle 70 is an example of the vehicle 1 of Fig. 1 and includes an image sensor 71 and a radar sensor 72.

[0248] The image sensor 71 is an example of the first sensor 3 of Fig. 1 and of the image sensor 10 of Fig. 2, and is configured as an RGB-IR sensor, as described with respect to the image sensor 51 and with respect to the image sensor 61. The image sensor 71 is arranged at a central rearview mirror of the vehicle 70. The image sensor 71 has a FoV that is wide enough to image occupants who are sitting on a seat on any one of a front seat row and a rear seat row of the vehicle 70. The radar sensor 72 is an example of the second sensor 4 of Fig. 1 and of the second sensor 20 of Fig. 3, and is configured as described with respect to the second sensor 52 and with respect to the radar sensors 62 to 66. The radar sensor 72 is arranged at the central rearview mirror of the vehicle 70.

[0249] The image sensor 71 and the radar sensor 72 are arranged close to each other such that their FoV largely overlap. The large overlap of the FoV of the image sensor 71 and the radar sensor 72 facilitates, in some embodiments, image registration between the image data acquired by the image sensor 71 and the second sensor data acquired by the radar sensor 72.

[0250] Fig. 8 illustrates an embodiment of an arrangement of weight sensors and seatbelt sensors in a vehicle 80. The vehicle 80 is an example of the vehicle 1 of Fig. 1 and includes a driver seat 81, a front seat 82, a left rear seat 83, a middle rear seat 84 and a right rear seat 85. The seats 81 toOur ref.: 250057EPWOP 28

[0251] 85 are examples of the seat 7 of Fig. 1. The driver seat 81 and the front seat 82 are arranged in a front seat row of the vehicle 80. The left, middle and right rear seats 83 to 85 are arranged in a rear seat row of the vehicle 80.

[0252] The driver seat 81 includes a weight sensor 81a and a seatbelt sensor 81b. The front seat 82 includes a weight sensor 82a and a seatbelt sensor 82b. The left rear seat 83 includes a weight sensor 83a and a seatbelt sensor 83b. The middle rear seat 84 includes a weight sensor 84a and a seatbelt sensor 84b. The right rear seat 85 includes a weight sensor 85a and a seatbelt sensor 85b. The weight sensors 81a, 82a, 83a, 84a and 85a are examples of the second sensor 4 of Fig. 1 and of the second sensor 20 of Fig. 3, and acquire the second sensor data 24 based on a weight signal 22 that indicates a weight on the respective seat 81, 82, 83, 84 or 85.

[0253] The seatbelt sensors 81b, 82b, 83b, 84b and 85b are examples of the second sensor 4 of Fig. 1 and of the second sensor 20 of Fig. 3, and acquire the second sensor data 24 based on a seatbelt signal 23 that indicates whether a seatbelt of the respective seat 81, 82, 83, 84 or 85 is buckled. It is noted that the embodiments of Fig. 5, 6, 7 and 8 are provided as examples of arranging the first and second sensors. The disclosure is not limited to these embodiments. The skilled person may appreciate that the sensor arrangements of Fig. 5, 6, 7 and / or 8 may be combined in any suitable way and / or that the first and / or second sensor may be arranged at any other suitable location. For example, more than one image sensor may be provided for imaging the interior of the vehicle.

[0254] In summary, the present disclosure provides a system for in-cabin occupancy detection.

[0255] In some embodiments, a system for in-cabin occupancy counting includes a vision sensing modality (e.g., the first sensor, such as RGB-IR or IR only) and another sensing modality (e.g., the second sensor, such as radar, weight, pressure, ToF, or the like) and a control unit (e.g., the circuitry described herein. The control unit may be configured to determine a lead sensing modality from the vision sensing modality and the other sensing modality, determine based on the lead sensing modality a number of occupants, and determine additional information (e.g., labelling) relating to each occupant counted by the lead sensing modality based on the other sensing modality.

[0256] In some embodiments, an IR sensor is used in combination with a radar to verify a function of each other (both could be the lead sensor).

[0257] The counting of the number of occupants may be performed continuously or may be based on a fixed timing (e.g., every minute etc.), based on a sensor reading from a door (e.g., a door openingOur ref.: 250057EPWOP 29

[0258] or door closing may initiate a recount, e.g., at a predetermined time after the sensor reading), based on a start and / or stop of a car system (e.g., the recounting may be triggered when the car system is started and / or stopped, e.g., like in parking mode), or based on any other suitable trigger event. There may also be an adaptative recount. Single frames or multiple frames may be used to count the number of occupants (e.g., to avoid fluctuations).

[0259] For facilitating a post-crash procedure, the circuitry may refresh a buffer memory with the occupancy number and meta-data at predefined time intervals or for a change in meta-data, and an SOS signal may be sent with the latest stored information (which may be representative of latest pre-crash occupancy information).

[0260] As described, for facilitating post-crash rescue, occupancy information (e.g., included in an emergency call / SOS signal) may be sent automatically in case of specific vehicle status information (e.g., crash triggered by an airbag deployment, SOS button triggered or the like). A buffer memory may be refreshed with the occupancy information at a predefined time period and the latest stored information (e.g., representative of pre-crash occupancy) may be sent in the emergency call.

[0261] In some embodiments, a low energy radar is used for surveillance to detect activities in the vehicle (e.g., car) when the vehicle is locked and closed. An activity detection may be triggered based on the radar to start an RGB-IR camera and record a live stream for surveillance. An RGB-IR camera and a radar sensor may be provided in a module that may be positioned in a center of a ceiling to cover all seats of the vehicle. For example, a child that may be left in a car may not be detected by an RGB-IR camera in some cases, but may be detected by a radar sensor. Thus, the radar sensor may provide a trigger for starting an RGB-IR or IR stream, and / or radarbased sensor data may be used if no RGB-IR or IR data are available.

[0262] In some embodiments, pre / post-crash rescue is facilitated by occupant counting for post-crash rescue, based on an emergency call (e.g., eCall, SOS signal) that may be sent post-crash.

[0263] Fig. 9 illustrates an embodiment of a general -purpose computer 150. The general -purpose computer 150 can be implemented such that it can basically function as any type of electronic control unit (ECU), advanced driver-assistance system (ADAS), trip computer, dashcam, event data recorder (EDR), accident data recorder (ADR), emergency call system, terminal device or the like. The general -purpose computer 150 is an example of an information processing apparatus that includes circuitry that is configured to perform the method according to the present technology (e.g., the method 30 of Fig. 4). The general-purpose computer 150 hasOur ref.: 250057EPWOP 30

[0264] components 151 to 161, which can form a circuitry, such as any one of the portion 5a, the portion 5b, the portion 5c, or the like, as described herein.

[0265] Embodiments which use software, firmware, programs or the like for performing the methods as described herein can be installed on computer 150, which is then configured to be suitable for the concrete embodiment.

[0266] The computer 150 has a CPU 151 (Central Processing Unit), which can execute various types of procedures and methods as described herein, for example, in accordance with programs stored in a read-only memory (ROM) 152, stored in a storage 157 and loaded into a random-access memory (RAM) 153, stored on a medium 160 which can be inserted in a respective drive 159, etc.

[0267] Furthermore, the computer 150 includes an artificial intelligence (Al) processor 151a. The Al processor 151a may include a graphics processing unit (GPU) and / or a tensor processing unit (TPU). The Al processor 151a may be configured to execute an Al model (e.g., an artificial neural network, ANN).

[0268] The CPU 151, the ROM 152 and the RAM 153 are connected with a bus 161, which in turn is connected to an input / output interface 154. The number of CPUs, memories and storages is only exemplary, and the skilled person will appreciate that the computer 150 can be adapted and configured accordingly for meeting specific requirements which arise when it functions as an information processing apparatus according to the present technology.

[0269] At the input / output interface 154, several components are connected: an input 155, an output 156, the storage 157, a communication interface 158 and the drive 159, into which a medium 160 (compact disc (CD), digital video disc (DVD), universal serial bus (USB) flash drive, secure digital (SD) card, CompactFlash (CF) memory, or the like) can be inserted.

[0270] The input 155 can be a pointer device (mouse, graphic table, or the like), a keyboard, a microphone, a camera, a touchscreen, an eye-tracking unit etc.

[0271] The output 156 can have a display (liquid crystal display (LCD), cathode ray tube (CRT) display, light-emitting diode (LED) display, electronic paper, etc.; e.g., included in a touchscreen), loudspeakers, etc.

[0272] The storage 157 can have a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid-state drive (SSD), a flash drive and the like.

[0273] The communication interface 158 can be adapted to communicate, for example, via universal serial bus (USB), a serial port (RS-232), parallel port (IEEE 1284), a local area network (LAN;Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 31

[0274] e.g., ethemet), wireless local area network (WLAN; e.g., Wi-Fi, IEEE 802.11), mobile telecommunications system (GSM, UMTS, LTE, NR etc.), Bluetooth, near-field communication (NFC), ZigBee, infrared, etc.

[0275] It should be noted that the description above only pertains to an example configuration of computer 150. Alternative configurations may be implemented with additional or other sensors, storage devices, interfaces or the like. For example, the communication interface 158 may support other radio access technologies than the mentioned UMTS, LTE and NR.

[0276] It should be recognized that the embodiments describe methods with an exemplary ordering of method steps. The specific ordering of method steps is however given for illustrative purposes only and should not be construed as binding. For example, the ordering of 31 and 35 in the embodiment of Fig. 4 may be exchanged. Also, the ordering of 41 and 42 in the embodiment of Fig. 4 may be exchanged. Further, also the ordering of 35 and 36 in the embodiment of Fig. 4 may be exchanged. Other changes of the ordering of method steps may be apparent to the skilled person.

[0277] Please note that the division of the circuitry 5 into portions 5a to 5c is only made for illustration purposes and that the present disclosure is not limited to any specific division of functions in specific units. For instance, the circuitry 5 could be implemented by a respective programmed processor, field programmable gate array (FPGA) and the like.

[0278] The method for a vehicle disclosed herein, as described with respect to Fig. 4, can also be implemented as a computer program causing a computer and / or a processor, such as circuitry 5 discussed above, to perform the method, when being carried out on the computer and / or processor. In some embodiments, also a non-transitory computer-readable recording medium is provided that stores therein a computer program product, which, when executed by a processor, such as the processor described above, causes the method described to be performed.

[0279] All units and entities described in this specification and claimed in the appended claims can, if not stated otherwise, be implemented as integrated circuit logic, for example on a chip, and functionality provided by such units and entities can, if not stated otherwise, be implemented by software.

[0280] In so far as the embodiments of the disclosure described above are implemented, at least in part, using software-controlled data processing apparatus, it will be appreciated that a computer program providing such software control and a transmission, storage or other medium by which such a computer program is provided are envisaged as aspects of the present disclosure.Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 32

[0281] Note that the present technology can also be configured as described below.

[0282] (1) A system for a vehicle, the system comprising:

[0283] a first sensor configured to acquire first sensor data that represent an image of an interior of the vehicle;

[0284] a second sensor configured to acquire second sensor data that represent the interior of the vehicle based on another observable parameter different to the first sensor data; and circuitry configured to:

[0285] determine a number of occupants of the vehicle based on at least one of the first sensor data and the second sensor data;

[0286] receive status information that indicates a status of the vehicle; and determine, based on the status information, on the determined number of occupants, and on at least one of the first and second sensor data, occupancy information that indicates a state of an occupant of the vehicle.

[0287] (2) The system of (1),

[0288] wherein the first sensor is configured to acquire the first sensor data based on infrared light.

[0289] (3) The system of (1) or (2),

[0290] wherein the first sensor is configured to acquire the first sensor data based on visible light.

[0291] (4) The system of any one of (1) to (3),

[0292] wherein the second sensor is configured to acquire the second sensor data based on radar. (5) The system of any one of (1) to (4),

[0293] wherein the second sensor is configured to acquire the second sensor data based on a weight on a seat of the vehicle.

[0294] (6) The system of any one of (1) to (5),

[0295] wherein the second sensor is configured to acquire the second sensor data based on detecting whether a seatbelt is buckled.

[0296] (7) The system of any one of (1) to (6),

[0297] wherein the occupancy information includes an indication of a type of passenger.

[0298] (8) The system of any one of (1) to (7),

[0299] wherein the occupancy information includes an indication of whether the occupant is wearing a seatbelt.Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 33

[0300] (9) The system of any one of (1) to (8),

[0301] wherein the occupancy information includes an indication of whether the occupant is sitting in a child seat.

[0302] (10) The system of any one of (1) to (9),

[0303] wherein the occupancy information includes an indication of an identity of the occupant. (11) The system of (10), wherein the circuitry is configured to:

[0304] determine, based on the second sensor data, whether an identity of the occupant determined based on the first sensor data is reliable.

[0305] (12) The system of any one of (1) to (11),

[0306] wherein the occupancy information includes an indication of a position of the occupant in the vehicle.

[0307] (13) The system of any one of (1) to (12), wherein the circuitry is configured to:

[0308] control the first sensor to acquire the first sensor data when the second sensor data indicate a presence of an occupant.

[0309] (14) The system of any one of (1) to (13), wherein the circuitry is configured to:

[0310] determine, based on the first sensor data and on the second sensor data, a first reliability of the first sensor data and a second reliability of the second sensor data; and

[0311] determine, based on the first reliability and on the second reliability, whether to determine the number of occupants based on the first sensor data or based on the second sensor data.

[0312] (15) The system of (14),

[0313] wherein the determining of the first reliability includes detecting a failure of the first sensor and the determining of the second reliability includes detecting a failure of the second sensor.

[0314] (16) The system of any one of (1) to (15), wherein the circuitry is configured to:

[0315] if the status information indicates an accident, initiate an emergency call and transmit, in the emergency call, the determined number of occupants and the determined occupancy information.

[0316] (17) The system of (16),

[0317] wherein the system further includes a buffer memory; and

[0318] wherein the circuitry is configured to:

[0319] write the determined number of occupants and the determined occupancyOur ref.: 250057EPWOP 34

[0320] information to the buffer memory at a predetermined rate; and

[0321] transmit, in the emergency call, a latest number of occupants and latest occupancy information from the buffer memory.

[0322] (18) The system of (16) or (17), wherein the circuitry is further configured to:

[0323] determine, based on the first and second sensor data, accident information that indicates an impact of the accident; and

[0324] transmit the accident information in the emergency call.

[0325] (19) The system of (18),

[0326] wherein the accident information includes medical information of an occupant of the vehicle.

[0327] (20) The system of (18) or (19),

[0328] wherein the accident information includes deformation information of the vehicle.

[0329] (21) The system of any one of (18) to (20),

[0330] wherein the accident information includes reliability information of the first sensor. (22) The system of any one of (18) to (21),

[0331] wherein the accident information includes reliability information of the second sensor. (23) The system of any one of (18) to (22), wherein the circuitry is configured to:

[0332] transmit, in a first stage of the emergency call, the number of occupants and the determined occupancy information before the determination of the accident information is completed;

[0333] complete the determination of the accident information; and

[0334] transmit, in a second stage of the emergency call, the determined accident information. (24) A method for a vehicle, the method comprising:

[0335] acquiring, from a first sensor, first sensor data that represent an image of an interior of the vehicle;

[0336] acquiring, from a second sensor, second sensor data that represent the interior of the vehicle based on another observable parameter different to the first sensor data;

[0337] determining a number of occupants of the vehicle based on at least one of the first sensor data and the second sensor data;

[0338] receiving status information that indicates a status of the vehicle; and

[0339] determining, based on the status information, on the determined number of occupants,Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 35

[0340] and on at least one of the first and second sensor data, occupancy information that indicates a state of an occupant of the vehicle.

[0341] (25) The method of (24),

[0342] wherein the first sensor acquires the first sensor data based on infrared light.

[0343] (26) The method of (24) or (25),

[0344] wherein the first sensor acquires the first sensor data based on visible light.

[0345] (27) The method of any one of (24) to (26),

[0346] wherein the second sensor acquires the second sensor data based on radar.

[0347] (28) The method of any one of (24) to (27),

[0348] wherein the second sensor acquires the second sensor data based on a weight on a seat of the vehicle.

[0349] (29) The method of any one of (24) to (28),

[0350] wherein the second sensor acquires the second sensor data based on detecting whether a seatbelt is buckled.

[0351] (30) The method of any one of (24) to (29),

[0352] wherein the occupancy information includes an indication of a type of passenger.

[0353] (31) The method of any one of (24) to (30),

[0354] wherein the occupancy information includes an indication of whether the occupant is wearing a seatbelt.

[0355] (32) The method of any one of (24) to (31),

[0356] wherein the occupancy information includes an indication of whether the occupant is sitting in a child seat.

[0357] (33) The method of any one of (24) to (32),

[0358] wherein the occupancy information includes an indication of an identity of the occupant. (34) The method of (33), comprising:

[0359] determining, based on the second sensor data, whether an identity of the occupant determined based on the first sensor data is reliable.

[0360] (35) The method of any one of (24) to (34),

[0361] wherein the occupancy information includes an indication of a position of the occupant in the vehicle.Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 36

[0362] (36) The method of any one of (24) to (35), comprising:

[0363] controlling the first sensor to acquire the first sensor data when the second sensor data indicate a presence of an occupant.

[0364] (37) The method of any one of (24) to (36), comprising:

[0365] determining, based on the first sensor data and on the second sensor data, a first reliability of the first sensor data and a second reliability of the second sensor data; and

[0366] determining, based on the first reliability and on the second reliability, whether to determine the number of occupants based on the first sensor data or based on the second sensor data.

[0367] (38) The system of (37),

[0368] wherein the determining of the first reliability includes detecting a failure of the first sensor and the determining of the second reliability includes detecting a failure of the second sensor.

[0369] (39) The method of any one of (24) to (38), comprising:

[0370] if the status information indicates an accident, initiating an emergency call and transmitting, in the emergency call, the determined number of occupants and the determined occupancy information.

[0371] (40) The method of (39), comprising:

[0372] writing the determined number of occupants and the determined occupancy information to a buffer memory at a predetermined rate; and

[0373] transmitting, in the emergency call, a latest number of occupants and latest occupancy information from the buffer memory.

[0374] (41) The method of (39) or (40), further comprising:

[0375] determining, based on the first and second sensor data, accident information that indicates an impact of the accident; and

[0376] transmitting the accident information in the emergency call.

[0377] (42) The method of (41),

[0378] wherein the accident information includes medical information of an occupant of the vehicle.

[0379] (43) The method of (41) or (42),

[0380] wherein the accident information includes deformation information of the vehicle.Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 37

[0381] (44) The method of any one of (41) to (43),

[0382] wherein the accident information includes reliability information of the first sensor. (45) The method of any one of (41) to (44),

[0383] wherein the accident information includes reliability information of the second sensor. (46) The method of any one of (41) to (45), comprising:

[0384] transmitting, in a first stage of the emergency call, the number of occupants and the determined occupancy information before the determination of the accident information is completed;

[0385] completing the determination of the accident information; and

[0386] transmitting, in a second stage of the emergency call, the determined accident information.

[0387] (47) A vehicle, comprising:

[0388] a seat; and

[0389] the system of any one of (1) to (23);

[0390] wherein the determining of the number of occupants includes detecting whether an occupant is sitting on the seat.

[0391] (48) A computer program comprising program code causing a computer to perform the method according to any one of (24) to (46), when being carried out on a computer.

[0392] (49) A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium that stores therein a computer program product, which, when executed by a processor, causes the method according to any one of (24) to (46) to be performed.

[0393] (50) A system for a vehicle, the system comprising:

[0394] a first sensor configured to acquire first sensor data that represent an image of an interior of the vehicle; and

[0395] circuitry configured to:

[0396] receive the first sensor data from the first sensor;

[0397] receive, from a second sensor that acquires second sensor data that represent the interior of the vehicle based on another observable parameter different to the first sensor data, the second sensor data;

[0398] determine a number of occupants of the vehicle based on at least one of the first sensor data and the second sensor data;

[0399] receive status information that indicates a status of the vehicle; and determine, based on the status information, on the determined number ofOur ref.: 250057EPWOP 38

[0400] occupants, and on at least one of the first and second sensor data, occupancy information that indicates a state of an occupant of the vehicle.

[0401] (51) Circuitry, configured to:

[0402] acquire, with a first sensor, first sensor data that represent an image of an interior of a vehicle;

[0403] acquire, from a second sensor, second sensor data that represent the interior of the vehicle based on another observable parameter than the first sensor data;

[0404] determine a number of occupants of the vehicle based on both of the first sensor data and the second sensor data and further based on confidence data in both of the first sensor data and the second sensor data; and

[0405] output the number of occupants to a non-transitory data store which provides source data for the assembling of emergency signaling information.

[0406] (52) A method, comprising:

[0407] acquiring, with a first sensor, first sensor data that represent an image of an interior of a vehicle;

[0408] acquiring, from a second sensor, second sensor data that represent the interior of the vehicle based on another observable parameter than the first sensor data;

[0409] determining, by circuitry, a number of occupants of the vehicle based on both of the first sensor data and the second sensor data and further based on confidence data in both of the first sensor data and the second sensor data; and

[0410] outputting the number of occupants to a non-transitory data store which provides source data for the assembling of emergency signaling information.

[0411] (53) A computer program comprising program code causing a computer to perform the method according to (52), when being carried out on a computer.

[0412] (54) A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium that stores therein a computer program product, which, when executed by a processor, causes the method according to (52) to be performed.

Claims

Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 1CLAIMS1. A system for a vehicle, the system comprising:a first sensor configured to acquire first sensor data that represent an image of an interior of the vehicle;a second sensor configured to acquire second sensor data that represent the interior of the vehicle based on another observable parameter different to the first sensor data; and circuitry configured to:determine a number of occupants of the vehicle based on at least one of the first sensor data and the second sensor data;receive status information that indicates a status of the vehicle; and determine, based on the status information, on the determined number of occupants, and on at least one of the first and second sensor data, occupancy information that indicates a state of an occupant of the vehicle.

2. The system of claim 1,wherein the first sensor is configured to acquire the first sensor data based on infrared light.

3. The system of claim 1,wherein the first sensor is configured to acquire the first sensor data based on visible light.

4. The system of claim 1,wherein the second sensor is configured to acquire the second sensor data based on radar.

5. The system of claim 1,wherein the second sensor is configured to acquire the second sensor data based on a weight on a seat of the vehicle.

6. The system of claim 1,wherein the second sensor is configured to acquire the second sensor data based on detecting whether a seatbelt is buckled.

7. The system of claim 1,wherein the occupancy information includes at least one of an indication of a type of passenger, an indication of whether the occupant is wearing a seatbelt, an indication of whetherOur ref.: 250057EPWOP 2the occupant is sitting in a child seat, an indication of an identity of the occupant, and an indication of a position of the occupant in the vehicle.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the circuitry is configured to:determine, based on the second sensor data, whether an identity of the occupant determined based on the first sensor data is reliable.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the circuitry is configured to:control the first sensor to acquire the first sensor data when the second sensor data indicate a presence of an occupant.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the circuitry is configured to:determine, based on the first sensor data and on the second sensor data, a first reliability of the first sensor data and a second reliability of the second sensor data; anddetermine, based on the first reliability and on the second reliability, whether to determine the number of occupants based on the first sensor data or based on the second sensor data.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the circuitry is configured to:if the status information indicates an accident, initiate an emergency call and transmit, in the emergency call, the determined number of occupants and the determined occupancy information.

12. The system of claim 11,wherein the system further includes a buffer memory; andwherein the circuitry is configured to:write the determined number of occupants and the determined occupancy information to the buffer memory at a predetermined rate; andtransmit, in the emergency call, a latest number of occupants and latest occupancy information from the buffer memory.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the circuitry is further configured to:determine, based on the first and second sensor data, accident information that indicates an impact of the accident; andtransmit the accident information in the emergency call.

14. The system of claim 13,wherein the accident information includes at least one of medical information of anOur ref.: 250057EPWOP 3occupant of the vehicle, deformation information of the vehicle, reliability information of the first sensor, and reliability information of the second sensor.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the circuitry is configured to:transmit, in a first stage of the emergency call, the number of occupants and the determined occupancy information before the determination of the accident information is completed;complete the determination of the accident information; andtransmit, in a second stage of the emergency call, the determined accident information.

16. A method for a vehicle, the method comprising:acquiring, from a first sensor, first sensor data that represent an image of an interior of the vehicle;acquiring, from a second sensor, second sensor data that represent the interior of the vehicle based on another observable parameter different to the first sensor data;determining a number of occupants of the vehicle based on at least one of the first sensor data and the second sensor data;receiving status information that indicates a status of the vehicle; anddetermining, based on the status information, on the determined number of occupants, and on at least one of the first and second sensor data, occupancy information that indicates a state of an occupant of the vehicle.

17. The method of claim 16,wherein the first sensor acquires the first sensor data based on infrared light.

18. The method of claim 16,wherein the first sensor acquires the first sensor data based on visible light.

19. The method of claim 16,wherein the second sensor acquires the second sensor data based on radar.

20. The method of claim 16,wherein the second sensor acquires the second sensor data based on a weight on a seat of the vehicle.

21. The method of claim 16,wherein the second sensor acquires the second sensor data based on detecting whether a seatbelt is buckled.Our ref.: 250057EPWOP 422. The method of claim 16,wherein the occupancy information includes at least one of an indication of a type of passenger, an indication of whether the occupant is wearing a seatbelt, an indication of whether the occupant is sitting in a child seat, an indication of an identity of the occupant, and an indication of a position of the occupant in the vehicle.

23. The method of claim 22, comprising:determining, based on the second sensor data, whether an identity of the occupant determined based on the first sensor data is reliable.

24. The method of claim 16, comprising:controlling the first sensor to acquire the first sensor data when the second sensor data indicate a presence of an occupant.

25. The method of claim 16, comprising:determining, based on the first sensor data and on the second sensor data, a first reliability of the first sensor data and a second reliability of the second sensor data; anddetermining, based on the first reliability and on the second reliability, whether to determine the number of occupants based on the first sensor data or based on the second sensor data.

26. The method of claim 16, comprising:if the status information indicates an accident, initiating an emergency call and transmitting, in the emergency call, the determined number of occupants and the determined occupancy information.

27. The method of claim 26, comprising:writing the determined number of occupants and the determined occupancy information to a buffer memory at a predetermined rate; andtransmitting, in the emergency call, a latest number of occupants and latest occupancy information from the buffer memory.

28. The method of claim 26, further comprising:determining, based on the first and second sensor data, accident information that indicates an impact of the accident; andtransmitting the accident information in the emergency call.

29. The method of claim 28,wherein the accident information includes at least one of medical information of anOur ref.: 250057EPWOP 5occupant of the vehicle, deformation information of the vehicle, reliability information of the first sensor, and reliability information of the second sensor.

30. The method of claim 28, comprising:transmitting, in a first stage of the emergency call, the number of occupants and the determined occupancy information before the determination of the accident information is completed;completing the determination of the accident information; andtransmitting, in a second stage of the emergency call, the determined accident information.

31. A vehicle, comprising:a seat; anda system that comprises:a first sensor configured to acquire first sensor data that represent an image of an interior of the vehicle;a second sensor configured to acquire second sensor data that represent the interior of the vehicle based on another observable parameter different to the first sensor data; andcircuitry configured to:determine a number of occupants of the vehicle based on at least one of the first sensor data and the second sensor data;receive status information that indicates a status of the vehicle; and determine, based on the status information, on the determined number of occupants, and on at least one of the first and second sensor data, occupancy information that indicates a state of an occupant of the vehicle;wherein the determining of the number of occupants includes detecting whether an occupant is sitting on the seat.

Images