External Vehicle Gesture Detection With Obstacle-Aware Action Execution

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing vehicle systems lack the intelligence to understand and respond to environmental scenarios effectively, leading to potential damage or safety hazards when executing commands from users outside the vehicle, such as opening windows during heavy rain or parking in scenarios with limited clearance.

Innovation Solution

A detection system that predicts obstacles to completing a task from a detected gesture outside the vehicle, using sensor data to estimate contextual interactions and execute corrective responses, such as delaying actions until safety conditions are met or requesting user input.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If the vehicle system automatically opens windows according to operator preferences, then user convenience is improved, but vehicle flooring may be damaged due to heavy rainfall

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveuser convenienceVSAvoidvehicle flooring damage

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary detection of environmental conditions (rainfall, temperature) before executing the window opening action. By detecting the rainstorm condition in advance, the system prevents the harmful action of opening windows during rainfall, thereby avoiding vehicle flooring damage while still allowing convenient operation under normal conditions

Inventive Principle:

Principle #9Preliminary anti-action

Solution Approach 2:

The system continuously monitors environmental sensor data and provides feedback to the control logic. When rainfall is detected, the system adjusts its behavior by delaying or preventing window opening, creating a closed-loop control that balances user convenience with vehicle protection

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

2Adaptability or versatility

If the vehicle system executes commands from users outside the vehicle, then user control capability is improved, but safety hazards may occur due to lack of environmental context understanding

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveuser control capabilityVSAvoidsafety

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary analysis of environmental conditions and obstacle detection before executing user commands. By checking the environment first (such as detecting pedestrians, obstacles, or unsafe conditions), the system ensures that command execution only proceeds when safe, thereby maintaining both user control capability and safety

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system introduces an intermediary safety check layer between the user command input and the actual vehicle action execution. This intermediary layer analyzes sensor data and environmental context, acting as a mediator that allows safe commands to pass through while blocking potentially harmful commands, thus preserving user control while ensuring safety

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Data Source

PatentUS20260016820A1Systems and methods for detecting gestures outside a vehicle and completing an action

Publication Date: 2026.01.15 TOYOTA JIDOSHA KK

AI summary

Systems, methods, and other embodiments described herein relate to predicting an obstacle to completing a task from a detected gesture outside a vehicle and completing the task upon satisfying a corrective response. In one embodiment, a method includes detecting a gesture command for an action from a user outside of a vehicle using sensor data. The method also includes predicting an obstacle for an incomplete task of the action from a vehicle state using the sensor data and notifying the user. The method also includes executing the incomplete task for the action upon a corrective response to the obstacle satisfying a parameter.