Vehicle Infotainment Touchpad Interface for Driver Attention Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle infotainment systems divert a driver's attention from the road while accessing controls, as controls are often not conveniently located for quick access while driving.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle infotainment system with a display screen and a touchpad controller, dividing the screen into regions for categorizing and displaying selectable points of interest, allowing users to interact with controls without needing to lean forward, by positioning the touchpad for easy reach and using intuitive gestures for navigation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of time
If controls are positioned in a conventional location in the vehicle infotainment system, then the system structure is simple, but the driver's attention is diverted from the road for a longer time when accessing controls
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a wireless communication dimension by enabling smartphone integration with the vehicle's infotainment system. The smartphone acts as a remote control interface, allowing the driver to interact with infotainment functions wirelessly from their seated position, eliminating the need to reach forward or divert attention to physically located controls. This dimensional shift from physical proximity to wireless connectivity resolves the contradiction between control accessibility and driver attention.
2Productivity
If controls are moved to a more user-friendly location for quick access, then the driver's attention is diverted less from the road, but the system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a smartphone as an intermediary device between the driver and the vehicle's infotainment system. The smartphone application serves as a mediator that provides quick access to infotainment controls through the driver's existing mobile device, which they already have immediate access to. This intermediary approach enables fast control access without modifying the vehicle's physical control layout or increasing system complexity, as the smartphone handles the additional functionality.
3Adaptability or versatility
If a comprehensive infotainment system is provided with multiple controls, then more functions are available to occupants, but the time required to access desired controls increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary action by pre-organizing infotainment controls into categorized menus and frequently used functions within easily accessible locations in the smartphone application interface. Common functions such as climate control, media playback, and navigation are positioned for immediate access, while less frequently used functions are nested in organized categories. This preliminary organization of controls allows the driver to access desired functions quickly without searching through a complex control hierarchy, maintaining both versatility and speed.
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle infotainment system is provided. The vehicle infotainment system includes a display screen for displaying a plurality of applications and a controller communicatively coupled to the display screen. The controller is configured to display an application on the display screen. The application is divided into a first display region, and a second display region. The controller is further configured to display a plurality of categories on the first display region. The controller is also configured to receive a selection of a category of the plurality of categories. In addition, the controller is configured to display, on the second display region, a plurality of selectable points of interest associated with the selected category.