Vehicle Seat Control Apparatus Alerting Driver During Automated Driving Transitions
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle seat control systems fail to effectively alert drivers transitioning from high automated driving to low automated driving, potentially leading to decreased alertness and increased fatigue during manual driving resumption.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle seat control apparatus equipped with an alertness detecting device, computation control device, and seat driving device that rapidly adjusts the seat position and attitude to alert the driver by displacing the seat at a higher speed than usual when transitioning from high automated driving to low automated driving, using techniques such as tilting the seatback or headrest to stimulate the driver.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the seat is adjusted slowly during transition from high automated driving to low automated driving, then the driver comfort is maintained, but the alertness of the driver is not effectively stimulated
Solution Approach 1:
The seat adjustment system performs periodic back-and-forth movements during the transition from high automated driving to low automated driving. The seat moves backward and forward in a rhythmic pattern, creating periodic mechanical stimulation that effectively alerts the driver while maintaining comfort through controlled motion cycles.
Solution Approach 2:
The seat adjustment speed is dynamically changed based on the driving mode transition. During the alerting phase, the seat adjustment speed is increased to provide stronger stimulation to the driver, while during normal transitions, the speed remains lower to maintain comfort. This dynamic speed adjustment resolves the contradiction between alertness stimulation and comfort maintenance.
2Ease of operation
If the seat is moved backward to a relaxing position during automated driving, then driver fatigue is reduced, but driver alertness may decrease when manual driving is required
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary seat position adjustments in preparation for mode transitions. Before transitioning from high automated driving to low automated driving, the seat is pre-positioned to an intermediate state, and during the transition, rapid adjustments are made to ensure the driver is properly alert and positioned for manual driving, preventing alertness decrease.
Solution Approach 2:
The system monitors driver state and provides feedback-based seat adjustments. When the system detects that the driver may be becoming drowsy or that a mode transition is upcoming, it automatically adjusts the seat position and provides mechanical stimulation through controlled movements to maintain driver alertness, creating a closed-loop feedback system.
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle seat control apparatus is equipped in a vehicle capable of travelling by automated driving and is configured to set a position and attitude of a seat of the vehicle to a driving position in low automated driving and to set the position and attitude of the seat to a relaxing position in high automated driving. The vehicle seat control apparatus includes an alertness detecting device configured to detect an alertness level of a driver seated on the seat, a computation control device configured to drive the seat driving device to perform an alerting operation if the alertness level is lower than a predetermined level when driving of the vehicle transitions from the high automated driving to the low automated driving, and a seat driving device configured to displace the seat at a higher speed than at a transition from the driving position to the relaxing position.