Vehicle Control System Prioritizing Main Driver Requests
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Solution Overview
Problem
Contemporary vehicles face challenges in ensuring reliable and safe operator control due to the difficulty in accurately detecting and prioritizing driver requests, particularly between primary and secondary inputs, which can lead to unsafe or uncomfortable driving experiences.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle control system that utilizes a combination of main and secondary sensor units, including pressure, torque, contact, proximity, image-processing, and audio signal-processing units, to determine a resulting driver's request, generating an actuation signal that prioritizes the main driver's request when present, while considering secondary requests for neutral or autonomous driving scenarios.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If multiple sensor units and input devices are used to detect driver requests, then the versatility and comfort of vehicle operation are improved, but the reliability of accurately determining driver intention deteriorates due to difficulty in prioritizing conflicting inputs
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments driver requests into hierarchical levels: main driver's requests (primary control via steering wheel, accelerator, brake) and secondary driver's requests (supplementary inputs). This segmentation allows reliable prioritization by establishing clear dominance rules where main requests override secondary ones, resolving the reliability issue while maintaining versatility through multiple input modalities.
Solution Approach 2:
The control device acts as an intermediary that receives measurement signals from multiple sensor units, processes them according to prioritization rules, and generates appropriate actuation signals. This intermediary function reconciles conflicting inputs by applying logical rules that determine which sensor input should dominate, thereby maintaining reliability across diverse operation modes.
2Reliability
If the system prioritizes main driver's requests over secondary requests, then the safety and reliability of vehicle operation are improved, but the comfort and responsiveness to subtle driver intentions deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts its response based on the presence or absence of main driver requests. When main requests are detected, the system responds decisively for safety. When only secondary requests are present (indicating neutral or autonomous driving scenarios), the system becomes more responsive to subtle inputs, thereby maintaining comfort without compromising safety in critical situations.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes its operational parameters based on the type of driver request detected. For main driver requests, it applies high-priority actuation for immediate safety response. For secondary requests in neutral scenarios, it applies softer, more gradual actuation that enhances comfort while still responding to driver intent, thus resolving the contradiction between safety and comfort.
3Measurement precision
If the system considers both main and secondary driver's requests, then the accuracy of determining resulting driver request is improved, but the complexity of the control system increases
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the control logic into distinct evaluation stages (first checking for main requests, then evaluating secondary requests only when main requests are absent), the system achieves high measurement precision without proportionally increasing complexity. The segmented approach uses simple if-then logic rather than complex simultaneous processing of all inputs.
Solution Approach 2:
The system applies different processing qualities to different input types: main driver requests receive immediate, high-priority processing with simple dominance rules, while secondary requests receive more nuanced processing only in the absence of main requests. This local differentiation optimizes the balance between precision and complexity by applying appropriate processing depth to each input level.
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle includes at least one main sensor unit, the measurement signal of which is characteristic of a main driver desire of a vehicle occupant with regard to an influence on the driving behavior of the vehicle, and at least one secondary sensor unit, the measurement signal of which is characteristic of a secondary driver desire. The main driver desire is represented by a motion of a hand or a foot of the vehicle occupant. The secondary driver desire is represented in a manner other than by the motion of the hand or the foot of the vehicle occupant. The vehicle also has at least one actuator. The actuator influences the driving behavior of the vehicle in dependence on a control signal. A resulting driver desire with regard to the influence on the driving behavior of the vehicle is determined in dependence on the main driver desire and in dependence on the secondary driver desire. In the case of a neutral value of the main driver desire, the secondary driver desire is assigned to the resulting driver desire. Otherwise, the main driver desire is assigned to the resulting driver desire. The control signal is produced in dependence on the resulting driver desire.