Vehicle Seat Transition Control for Safe Manual Driving Handover
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
In vehicles capable of autonomous driving, there is a safety concern when switching from autonomous to manual driving, as the seat conditions may not align with the driver's readiness, leading to potential safety risks due to mismatched timing and driver condition.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle control system that includes a driving controller, a seat controller, and a driver condition detector, which coordinates the switching between autonomous and manual driving modes by adjusting the seat configuration and speed, ensuring the seat is in a suitable condition for manual driving before switching, and preventing autonomous driving from switching to manual driving if the driver is not ready.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the seat form is changed from autonomous driving form to manual driving form, then the seat configuration becomes suitable for manual driving, but the time required for seat motion may not match the driver's readiness timing
Solution Approach 1:
The seat controller performs preliminary action by starting the seat form change process in advance before the driver is fully ready for manual driving. The seat begins transitioning from autonomous driving form to manual driving form proactively, ensuring the configuration is prepared and available when the driver becomes ready, thus resolving the timing mismatch between seat motion and driver readiness
Solution Approach 2:
The seat controller dynamically adjusts the seat motion speed and timing based on real-time detection of driver condition. By making the seat motion dynamic and adaptive rather than fixed, the system can synchronize the seat form change with the driver's actual readiness state, improving both safety and timing coordination
2Reliability
If autonomous driving switches to manual driving based on driver condition detection, then safety is improved by ensuring driver readiness, but the switching flexibility and responsiveness are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The driving controller changes the parameter of driver readiness by using detection results to determine switching timing. Instead of fixed timing or pure driver initiation, the system adjusts the switching decision based on detected driver parameters (readiness state), achieving both safety improvement and flexible adaptation to different driving scenarios
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback by continuously detecting driver condition and using this information to control the switching decision. The detection result feeds back to the driving controller, which adjusts the switching timing accordingly, creating a closed-loop system that balances safety requirements with operational flexibility
3Productivity
If the seat motion speed is increased to reduce transition time, then productivity is improved, but the comfort and safety during motion may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The seat controller applies dynamics by adjusting the seat motion speed based on the detected driver readiness state. When the driver is ready for manual driving, the seat motion speed can be increased to improve transition efficiency. When the driver is not ready or conditions are uncertain, the speed is reduced to maintain safety and comfort, thus dynamically optimizing both productivity and reliability
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle control system includes a driving controller that switches between autonomous driving an manual driving of a vehicle, a seat whose form is changed between a form during autonomous driving and a form during manual driving that are different from each other, and a seat controller that controls motion of the seat when a form of the seat is changed. If the seat is in a form during autonomous driving, the driving controller does not switch autonomous driving to manual driving when controlling the vehicle.