Pickup Tailgate Object Detection via Camera and Sensor Fusion
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Solution Overview
Problem
Automated power tailgates in pick-up trucks pose safety hazards and risk damage by moving unsafely, as they lack effective monitoring systems to detect objects in their path during operation.
Innovation Solution
A pick-up truck system incorporating a bed camera, side mirror cameras, tactile sensors, and a control module that analyzes data from these sensors to stop the tailgate and provide warnings when objects are detected in its path, ensuring safe operation and preventing damage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If automated power tailgate is implemented for user convenience, then ease of operation is improved, but safety hazards and damage risk increase due to lack of monitoring
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary detection of objects in the tailgate path using cameras and sensors before the automated operation commences. The control module receives image data and sensor signals, processes this information to identify potential hazards, and only permits tailgate movement when the path is clear, thereby preventing safety hazards before they occur
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors the tailgate environment during automated operation using cameras and sensors that detect objects in real-time. When an object is detected in the path, the control module receives this feedback signal and immediately stops or reverses the tailgate movement, providing continuous safety verification throughout the automated operation cycle
2Reliability
If monitoring system with cameras and sensors is added to detect objects in path, then safety is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The control module serves multiple functions: it controls the automated tailgate operation, processes image data from cameras to detect objects, receives signals from tactile sensors and proximity sensors, and manages the stopping or reversing of the tailgate based on detected conditions. This multi-functionality consolidates what would otherwise be separate systems into a single integrated control unit, reducing overall device complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The system combines multiple detection methods (visual detection via cameras, tactile detection via sensors on the tailgate surface, and proximity detection) into a unified monitoring system. The control module integrates data from all these sources to make a single decision about tailgate operation, merging multiple safety functions into one coordinated system rather than operating separate independent systems
Data Source
AI summary
A pick-up truck includes a pick-up bed, a tailgate connected to the pick-up bed, a motor configured to move the tailgate along a path, a camera, and processors. The processors stop the tailgate while the tailgate is automatically moving in response to detecting, via the camera, any object within the path.