Vehicle Surroundings Display Visibility Control for Driver Re-Engagement
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Solution Overview
Problem
In autonomous driving systems, drivers may rely excessively on in-vehicle displays for surrounding environment awareness, neglecting visual observation, which can lead to reduced situational awareness and safety risks.
Innovation Solution
A display device that reduces the visibility of vehicle surroundings images when the driver does not hold the steering wheel for a predetermined period, prompting them to visually confirm the environment by increasing the difficulty of relying solely on the display.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If a highly accurate image representing the surrounding situation is displayed on an in-vehicle display unit, then the driver can obtain detailed information about the surrounding environment, but the driver may confirm the surrounding situation by referring to the image instead of visual observation
Solution Approach 1:
The display device dynamically adjusts the visibility of the surrounding situation image based on the driver's steering behavior. When the driver releases the steering wheel (indicating potential disengagement), the system reduces image visibility to prompt visual observation. This dynamic adjustment resolves the contradiction by adapting information presentation to the driver's actual engagement state.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses steering wheel sensor data as feedback to monitor driver engagement and adjusts display visibility accordingly. The feedback loop detects when the driver releases the steering wheel and responds by reducing image visibility, thereby ensuring the driver maintains visual observation of the real surrounding environment rather than relying solely on the display.
2Reliability
If the driver is required to visually confirm the surrounding environment during autonomous driving control, then safety is improved, but the driver may still rely on the display image and neglect visual observation
Solution Approach 1:
The system takes preliminary anti-action by reducing display visibility before a safety incident can occur. When the steering wheel is released, the system proactively reduces image visibility to prevent the driver from becoming overly reliant on the display, thereby maintaining safety requirements while managing driver behavior.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the visibility parameter of the display based on steering wheel engagement status. By adjusting this parameter dynamically, the system balances safety requirements with driver convenience, ensuring that high visibility is maintained only when the driver is actively engaged through proper steering wheel contact.
3Ease of operation
If the visibility of the vehicle surroundings image is maintained at high level, then the driver can easily confirm surrounding situation, but the driver may neglect visual observation of the actual environment
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts display visibility based on real-time detection of steering wheel engagement. When the driver releases the steering wheel, visibility is reduced to prompt visual observation. This dynamic control resolves the contradiction by ensuring high visibility is provided only when the driver is properly engaged, otherwise prioritizing visual observation reliability.
Data Source
AI summary
A display device includes: a steering non-holding recognition unit configured to recognize a steering non-holding state in which a driver of the vehicle does not hold steady a steering wheel of the vehicle based on detection result of a steering sensor of the vehicle; and a display control unit configured to display the vehicle surroundings image on the display unit based on detection result of an external sensor of the vehicle. The display control unit reduces visibility of the vehicle surroundings image in the display unit when the steering non-holding state continues for a predetermined first period or longer, compared to visibility of the vehicle surroundings image when the steering non-holding state does not continue for the first period or longer, during execution of autonomous driving control in which the driver is required to visually confirm a surrounding environment.