Vehicle Mirror Folding Alerts for Low-Clearance Driving
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Solution Overview
Problem
Vehicles equipped with side-view mirrors and cameras face risks of collision in low-width environments due to the occupants' unawareness of the need to fold these components, leading to potential impacts with objects.
Innovation Solution
A system comprising a controller, GNSS, ranging sensor system, and display that determines the vehicle's speed and geographical location to assess clearance distance, providing notifications and automatically folding mirrors/cameras when the distance falls below a threshold to prevent collisions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If side-view mirrors and cameras are configured to fold to decrease vehicle width, then the risk of collision in low-width environments is reduced, but occupants may remain unaware of when to fold them
Solution Approach 1:
The system continuously monitors vehicle speed, geographical location, and clearance distance, then provides real-time feedback to the occupant through notifications when folding is recommended. This closed-loop feedback mechanism ensures occupants are informed of the appropriate timing for folding mirrors and cameras, resolving the awareness problem while maintaining collision risk reduction.
Solution Approach 2:
The system determines clearance distance in advance using GNSS location data and stored environmental information before the vehicle actually enters the low-width environment. By providing advance notification to the occupant, the system enables preliminary action (folding mirrors/cameras) before collision risk arises, effectively preventing the problem while maintaining reliability.
2Loss of information
If the system continuously monitors clearance distance and provides notifications, then occupant awareness is enhanced, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system leverages existing multi-functional components already present in modern vehicles: GNSS receivers for location tracking, existing camera systems for clearance estimation, and infotainment displays for notifications. By making these existing components work together for the additional function of mirror/camera folding awareness, the system enhances occupant awareness without significantly increasing overall device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses the vehicle's own existing sensors and processors to monitor clearance distance and generate notifications, rather than requiring entirely new dedicated hardware. The existing infotainment system serves dual purposes: its original functions plus the new occupant awareness function, thereby reducing the need for additional complex components.
3Ease of operation
If the vehicle width is increased to accommodate side-view mirrors and cameras, then occupant awareness and convenience are improved, but the risk of impacting objects in low-width environments increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables the side-view mirrors and cameras to dynamically change their configuration state based on real-time environmental conditions. Rather than being fixed in an extended position for optimal viewing, they can fold in response to detected low-width environments, thus maintaining occupant convenience while eliminating the static collision risk.
Solution Approach 2:
The system takes preliminary action by notifying the occupant to fold the mirrors and cameras before the vehicle enters a low-width environment where collision would occur. This preventive measure allows the vehicle to maintain its full width for convenience during normal operation while proactively preventing the harmful collision effect when needed.
Data Source
AI summary
A system for enhancing occupant awareness for a vehicle includes a display for displaying information to the occupant of the vehicle and a controller in electrical communication with the display. The controller is programmed to determine an activation state of the system. The activation state includes an activated state and a deactivated state. The controller is further programmed to determine a clearance distance between the vehicle and an object in an environment surrounding the vehicle in response to determining that the activation state is the activated state. The controller is further programmed to display a notification to the occupant of the vehicle based at least in part on the clearance distance.