Relocatable Touch Interface for Adaptive Vehicle Ergonomics
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional touch user interfaces in vehicles are fixed and cannot dynamically adjust their location in response to changing user postures or vehicle configurations, becoming less ideal as the user's position changes, especially in automated driving scenarios where interior layouts are more fluid.
Innovation Solution
A dynamic touch user interface system that includes a touch-input interface with a relocatable active area, visual indicators, and sensors to detect circumstances, allowing the interface to adapt its location based on user needs and vehicle modes, ensuring ergonomic and comfortable control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the touch user interface is fixed at a predetermined location, then the interface structure is simple and stable, but the interface cannot adapt to changing user postures or vehicle configurations
Solution Approach 1:
The touch interface transitions from a fixed static position to a dynamic relocatable position. The active area can be repositioned along the reference surface based on detected user posture or vehicle configuration, allowing the interface to adapt dynamically to different usage scenarios while maintaining structural simplicity through controlled mobility.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates sensors that detect user posture or vehicle configuration and provide feedback to the control mechanism. This feedback loop enables the interface to automatically relocate to optimal positions based on real-time conditions, resolving the contradiction between adaptability and complexity through intelligent control.
2Ease of operation
If the touch user interface is fixed to the dashboard or center console, then the interface location is stable, but the interface becomes less ideally located as the driver reclines
Solution Approach 1:
The interface location is made dynamic rather than fixed. As the driver reclines or vehicle configuration changes, the active area relocates along the reference surface to maintain optimal ergonomic positioning, thereby preserving ease of operation while adapting to posture changes.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the positional parameter of the interface based on detected conditions. When user posture or vehicle configuration changes, the interface relocates to a new position that maintains ergonomic accessibility, effectively adjusting the position parameter in response to environmental changes.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the touch user interface is relocatable along the reference surface, then the interface adapts to user needs, but the interface requires additional sensors and visual indicators
Solution Approach 1:
The relocatable interface system serves multiple functions: it detects user posture, determines optimal positions, relocates the active area, and provides visual feedback. By integrating these functions into a unified system, the patent reduces overall complexity despite the added relocation capability, as the same control mechanism manages multiple aspects of interface behavior.
Data Source
AI summary
A dynamic touch user interface system includes a touch-input interface, one or more visual indicators, and a plurality of sensors. The touch-input interface has a reference surface that covers one or more touch elements. The touch elements define an active area that allows user communication with a computer through touch. The active area is relocatable along the reference surface in response to detected circumstances. The visual indicators visually identify a location of the active area. The sensors detect the circumstances affecting a relocation of the active area.