Vehicle Keypad Disabled Mode Prevents Inadvertent Actuation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Vehicle access systems with capacitive or touch-sensitive keypads often experience inadvertent actuation due to water or other conductive media, leading to unintended locking or unlocking of vehicle doors, especially during rain or car washes, causing inconvenience and potential safety issues.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a disabled mode for the keypad that can be activated passively or actively, based on conditions such as vehicle movement, gear position, or water detection, to prevent output signals from being sent to the vehicle door lock, ensuring that the keypad is only operational when intended, thereby preventing inadvertent actuation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the keypad is made sensitive to detect touch inputs, then the ease of operation is improved, but the reliability deteriorates due to inadvertent actuation by water or other capacitive media
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically changes the operational state of the keypad between enabled and disabled modes based on detected conditions. The control unit monitors for water presence or other capacitive media and automatically disables the keypad when such conditions are detected, preventing inadvertent actuation while maintaining ease of operation during normal conditions.
2Ease of operation
If the keypad remains continuously enabled for easy access, then the ease of operation is improved, but the object-affected harmful factors worsen due to water or conductive media causing unintended locking
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies preliminary anti-action by detecting the presence of water or capacitive media before inadvertent actuation can occur. The control unit proactively disables the keypad when these harmful factors are detected, preventing unintended locking or unlocking actions before they can happen.
Solution Approach 2:
The control unit acts as an intermediary between the keypad inputs and the door lock system. It monitors the operational state of the keypad and blocks signal transmission to the door lock when water or other harmful media are detected, preventing harmful effects while maintaining system functionality.
3Reliability
If the system adds detection mechanisms for water and vehicle conditions, then the reliability is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The control unit performs multiple functions: it processes keypad input codes, detects water presence through capacitive sensing, monitors vehicle motion and gear position, and controls the disabled mode state. By consolidating these diverse functions into a single control unit, the system achieves high reliability without proportionally increasing overall device complexity.
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
Prevents unintended actuation of vehicle door locks by disabling the keypad in specific situations, ensuring secure and reliable access to the vehicle, reducing the risk of accidental locking or unlocking and enhancing user control over the access system.
Implementation Method 1
The keypad sensors may be capacitive and/or touch sensitive
Data Source
AI summary
In at least some implementations, a method for preventing inadvertant operation of a vehicle access system that includes a plurality of inputs involves providing a keypad operable to output signals to control a vehicle system based on entry of a code via the inputs, detecting when a predetermined access sequence is inputted via the inputs and outputting a signal to a vehicle system to allow access to the vehicle, and operating the keypad in a disabled mode wherein the keypad output signals are not outputted. The disabled mode may be activated either actively or passively or both, and the disabled mode may be terminated either actively or passively or both.