Vehicle Canopy and Seat Motion Control for Easier Boarding
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Solution Overview
Problem
Users face difficulties and inefficiencies when boarding or deboarding a vehicle with a canopy, as they need to perform multiple operations to adjust the seat and open or close the canopy, requiring significant time and effort.
Innovation Solution
A boarding/deboarding controller that synchronizes the movement of the canopy and seat position changes, using a combination of seat lifter, reclining, and sliding devices, to facilitate easy boarding and deboarding by concurrently moving the canopy and adjusting the seat posture or position during opening and closing movements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the user manually operates the canopy and seat separately, then the operations are simple and independent, but the time and effort for boarding and deboarding increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the canopy operation and seat position adjustment into a single integrated operation. When the user operates the canopy to open or close, the seat automatically adjusts its position concurrently. This merging of two separate operations (canopy movement and seat adjustment) into one unified action reduces the total time and effort required for boarding and deboarding, directly resolving the technical contradiction.
Solution Approach 2:
The seat position is automatically adjusted in advance during the canopy operation, before the user needs to board or deboard. The system predicts the optimal seat position based on the canopy's movement stage and automatically moves the seat to that position, eliminating the need for separate manual adjustments and reducing overall time loss.
2Ease of operation
If the seat position is fixed, then the seat structure is simple, but the user experiences difficulty in boarding or deboarding depending on seat position
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the canopy control system with the seat adjustment system, so that a single user input for canopy operation triggers both canopy movement and coordinated seat position adjustment. This integration allows the seat to adapt to different boarding scenarios without requiring complex independent control mechanisms, as the seat adjustment is coupled with the existing canopy operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The seat position transitions from a fixed state to a dynamic state that automatically adapts based on the canopy's movement. The seat adjustment mechanism is activated and controlled dynamically during the canopy operation, allowing the seat to move to optimal positions for boarding or deboarding without requiring complex pre-programmed settings or manual intervention.
3Reliability
If the canopy and seat move independently, then the control system is simple, but interference between canopy and seat may occur
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary positioning of the seat based on the anticipated canopy movement trajectory. Before the canopy reaches positions where interference might occur, the seat is automatically adjusted to safe positions. This predictive control approach, where the seat position is pre-adjusted according to the canopy's movement stage, prevents collisions without requiring complex real-time collision detection and response systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The control system incorporates feedback mechanisms that monitor the relative positions of the canopy and seat during operation. Based on this feedback, the system dynamically adjusts the seat movement to maintain safe distances and prevent interference. The synchronized control uses position feedback from both the canopy and seat to coordinate their movements and avoid collisions.
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a boarding/deboarding controller that enables reduce time and effort for boarding and deboarding a vehicle of which canopy is opened or closed to allow a user boards or deboards. One aspect of the present disclosure provides a boarding/deboarding controller for a vehicle including a seat, an occupant compartment provided with the seat, and a canopy that moves to a closed position where the canopy covers the occupant compartment and to an opened position, which is situated upper than the closed position. The boarding/deboarding controller is configured to change a posture or position of the seat concurrently while the canopy is moved from the closed position to the opened position in an opened movement, or, from the opened position to the closed position in a closed movement.