Vehicle Door Lock Control for Unattended Child or Pet Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Adults unintentionally leaving children or pets in parked vehicles can result in unsafe interior conditions due to extreme external temperatures, leading to heatstroke or hypothermia, and bystanders may struggle to access locked vehicles to assist.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle management system that includes sensors to monitor occupancy in different zones, preventing door locking when a child or pet is detected unattended and providing alerts to the operator, using safety belt sensors, seat sensors, image recognition, and thermographic cameras to determine occupancy and manage door actuators.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the vehicle door locking function is enabled to secure the vehicle, then vehicle security is improved, but children or pets may be trapped inside leading to heatstroke or hypothermia
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies preliminary anti-action by detecting occupancy before the door locking action is executed. When a child or pet is detected in the vehicle, the system preemptively prevents the locking action from occurring, thereby counteracting the potential harmful effect of trapping occupants inside before extreme temperatures can cause harm.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback by continuously monitoring vehicle occupancy status and using this information to control the door locking function. The occupancy detection system provides real-time feedback to the door control system, allowing the locking function to adapt its behavior based on whether occupants are present, thus resolving the contradiction between security and safety.
2Reliability
If the vehicle door is locked to prevent unauthorized access, then vehicle security is improved, but bystanders cannot access the vehicle to assist trapped occupants
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies dynamics by making the door locking status adaptive rather than static. The locking function dynamically changes based on occupancy detection - remaining unlocked when occupants are detected and locked when the vehicle is empty. This dynamic behavior allows the system to maintain security when appropriate while ensuring accessibility when needed for emergency rescue.
3Measurement precision
If multiple sensors are used to detect occupancy, then detection accuracy is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system merges multiple detection approaches by combining weight-based sensors with image recognition technology. Rather than using these as separate independent systems, they are integrated into a unified occupancy detection system where the strengths of each method complement the other, achieving high accuracy while managing complexity through functional integration.
Solution Approach 2:
The system applies universality by designing the sensor system to serve multiple functions simultaneously. The weight sensors and image recognition system not only detect occupancy but also provide information about occupant presence, position, and characteristics. This multi-functionality justifies the complexity by delivering comprehensive occupancy awareness from a single integrated system.
Data Source
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AI summary
Vehicle management system in a vehicle and method of operating the same. The vehicle includes an operator zone and a passenger zone. The system includes processor-executable instructions to disable a vehicle lock actuator to prevent locking of a vehicle door where unsafe vehicle conditions may be detected. The system is configured to detect that the operator zone is unoccupied and determine that the passenger zone is occupied while the operator zone is unoccupied to identify that the vehicle is in a non-driver occupied mode. The system receives a vehicle lock request signal and, in response to receiving the vehicle lock request signal while the vehicle is in the non-driver occupied mode, disables the vehicle lock actuator to prevent locking of a vehicle door.