Vehicle Operating System Gesture Input Conflict Resolution
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing motor vehicle gesture recognition systems often incorrectly interpret movements of conventional operating elements as user inputs, leading to undesired or dangerous situations, particularly in multimodal operating environments where gestures and inputs overlap spatially and temporally.
Innovation Solution
The evaluation unit checks for simultaneous and spatially coincident user gestures and inputs within a defined time and spatial tolerance range, modifying or suppressing the gesture function if a match is detected, prioritizing physical input operations over gesture-controlled functions to prevent misinterpretation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If gesture recognition is enabled in the detection area of conventional operating elements, then multimodal operating concepts can be implemented, but conventional operating actions are incorrectly interpreted as gestures leading to undesired or dangerous situations
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses feedback from multiple sensors (camera, microphone, touch sensors) to verify gesture detections. When a gesture is detected, the system checks for corresponding physical inputs or contextual cues before executing the gesture function, preventing misinterpretation of conventional operating actions as gestures.
Solution Approach 2:
The evaluation unit acts as an intermediary between the gesture sensor and the operating function execution. It analyzes detected gestures in context, cross-referencing with other sensor data and system state to determine whether a detected movement is truly a user gesture or merely operation of a conventional control element.
2Reliability
If spatial limits are defined for gesture recognition to avoid misinterpretation, then false gestures are reduced, but gestures at control element locations cannot be recognized
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the effective detection area for gestures based on the active state of conventional control elements. When a control element is being operated, the detection area is temporarily restricted in that region; when not in use, full gesture recognition is available. This dynamic adjustment allows both accurate gesture recognition and control element operation without spatial limitations.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary detection of control element operations using dedicated sensors (touch sensors, position sensors) before gesture recognition is activated. This preliminary action allows the system to preemptively adjust gesture detection parameters or suppress gesture functions in areas where control elements are being operated, preventing misinterpretation before it occurs.
3Productivity
If gesture detection sensitivity is increased to improve recognition, then more gestures are detected, but false detections from conventional operating elements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs feedback mechanisms where multiple sensor inputs (camera, microphone, touch sensors, position sensors) continuously monitor the operating environment. When a gesture is detected, the system cross-validates it against feedback from other sensors to confirm it is a true user gesture rather than operation of a conventional control element, maintaining high detection sensitivity while filtering false positives.
Solution Approach 2:
The evaluation unit serves as an intermediary that receives high-sensitivity gesture detections and filters them through contextual analysis. It cross-references detected gestures with data from other sensors and system state to determine validity, allowing the system to maintain high gesture detection sensitivity while preventing false detections from triggering unwanted functions.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach significantly reduces the likelihood of hazardous situations by ensuring that gesture functions are not executed when they may be misinterpreted from conventional operating actions, enhancing safety by prioritizing secure, physical input operations.
Implementation Method 1
A first control unit (1), which can detect hand and finger gestures, is arranged above the center console (7). In order to recognize gestures, the first control unit (1) has a capacitive or preferably optical sensor that detects movements of the driver and possibly the front passenger without contact.
Implementation Method 2
Extremely advantageous is the use of a time-of-flight camera, which enables direct distance measurements
Implementation Method 3
or the use of a thermal imaging camera, which can distinguish uncovered parts of the body from objects in the environment due to their characteristic temperature.
Data Source
Figure 1
AI summary
The invention describes an operating system for a motor vehicle, having a first operating unit for detecting user gestures, having at least one second operating unit for detecting user inputs, and having an evaluation unit which assigns the user gestures and user inputs detected by the operating units to operating functions, wherein the evaluation unit checks whether a user gesture and a user input have been detected at the same time within the same time window and within the same spatial area, and wherein the evaluation unit modifies or suppresses the operating function assigned to the user gesture in the event of a positive result of the check.