Vehicle Display Device Segmented Control for Autonomous Mode Reliability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle systems fail to reliably and cost-effectively inform drivers about the current driving mode, particularly in autonomous driving modes, risking incorrect displays that could mislead drivers about vehicle control responsibility.
Innovation Solution
A device with a display unit comprising a light source and an imaging unit, controlled by separate high-reliability control devices, ensures that the autonomous driving mode is accurately displayed only when active, using a higher safety qualification for the light source control and a lower qualification for the imaging unit, preventing incorrect displays of autonomous mode activation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a single control device is used to control both the light source and imaging unit, then the device complexity is reduced, but the reliability of displaying the autonomous driving mode is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The control system is segmented into two independent control devices: a first control device that controls only the light source with high reliability qualification, and a second control device that controls the imaging unit with lower qualification. This segmentation allows the critical light source control to have higher reliability while avoiding the complexity and cost of making the entire system equally complex.
Solution Approach 2:
Different parts of the control system are assigned different quality levels according to their functional importance. The light source control receives higher reliability qualification (first technical qualification) because it determines whether the autonomous mode display is activated, while the imaging unit control receives lower qualification (second technical qualification) since it only provides the visual content that is conditional on the light source being active.
2Reliability
If the light source is controlled with high reliability qualification, then incorrect display of autonomous mode is prevented, but the cost of the control system increases
Solution Approach 1:
High reliability qualification is applied locally only to the light source control function where safety is critical, rather than uniformly across the entire display system. This allows the system to meet safety requirements for the critical function while using more cost-effective components for non-critical functions like the imaging unit control.
Solution Approach 2:
The control system is divided into critical and non-critical segments, allowing differential investment in reliability. The first control device for the light source receives the higher qualification investment necessary for safety, while the second control device for the imaging unit uses a more economical qualification level, optimizing the overall cost-reliability balance.
3Reliability
If the imaging unit is controlled with high reliability qualification, then the overall system reliability is improved, but the cost and complexity increase without proportional benefit
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the principle of local quality by assigning different reliability qualifications to different parts of the control system based on their functional importance. The light source control, which determines whether the autonomous mode is actually active, receives high reliability qualification, while the imaging unit control, which only provides visual content conditional on the light source being active, receives lower qualification. This differential approach optimizes overall system reliability without the unnecessary cost and complexity of uniformly high qualification across all components.
Data Source
AI summary
Device and method for displaying a current driving mode of a vehicle, at least one of several driving modes of the vehicle is an autonomous driving mode. The device includes a display unit having a light source and an imaging unit interacting with the light source. A first controller controls the light source. The first controller is configured such that it meets a first technical qualification with regards to a reliability or safety criterion. The first controller only activates the light source in the event of the current presence of the autonomous driving mode. A second controller controls the imaging unit, the second controller is configured such that that it meets a second technical qualification with regards to the reliability or safety criterion. The first technical qualification corresponds to a higher degree of reliability or safety with regards to the reliability or safety criterion than the second technical qualification.