Autonomous Drive Trigger Pedal for Vehicle Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
In vehicles with autonomous driving capabilities, the input of the autonomous drive control start trigger often causes disturbances in steering, accelerator, and brake operations, leading to disruptions in vehicle behavior, especially when the driver changes posture to access the autonomous drive start button, potentially resulting in discontinuous accelerator or brake operations.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle design featuring an autonomous driving device with a self-position estimation section, object recognition section, track generation section, actuator, and an autonomous drive control start trigger input pedal located to the left of the accelerator and brake pedals, allowing the driver to initiate autonomous drive control without using hands engaged in steering or foot engaged in accelerator or brake operations, along with a driver state estimation and lock mechanism to ensure proper initiation and termination of autonomous drive control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the autonomous drive control start trigger is input via a button during manual drive, then autonomous drive control can be initiated, but disturbance in steering operation and vehicle behavior occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a pedal operated by the left foot as an intermediary input device, separating the autonomous drive control initiation function from the hands (steering) and right foot (accelerator/brake). This mediator prevents disturbance in manual drive operations while enabling autonomous drive control start trigger input.
2Ease of operation
If the driver uses hand to press the autonomous drive start button, then autonomous drive control can be started, but the driver's sight line moves and posture changes causing discontinuous accelerator or brake operations
Solution Approach 1:
The left foot pedal serves as a mediator that allows autonomous drive control initiation without requiring the driver to move their sight line or change posture significantly. The left foot is naturally positioned and does not interfere with the continuous monitoring of the road or the operation of accelerator and brake pedals by the right foot.
3Device complexity
If the autonomous drive control start trigger input is integrated with existing pedals, then device complexity is reduced, but disturbance in accelerator or brake operation occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the foot-operated control functions by assigning the left foot to the autonomous drive control start trigger pedal and the right foot to the accelerator and brake pedals. This segmentation prevents interference between different control functions while maintaining a relatively simple overall device structure.
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle includes an autonomous driving device that executes autonomous drive control; a track generation section that generates a travel track of the vehicle based on an estimation result by a self-position estimation section and a recognition result by an object recognition section; an actuator that moves the vehicle so that the vehicle travels along the travel track; a trigger input pedal disposed at a left side from an accelerator pedal and a brake pedal 102, seen from a driver; and an autonomous drive control start determination section that starts the autonomous drive control when an autonomous drive control start trigger is inputted via the trigger input pedal and it is determined that start of the autonomous drive control is possible.