Vehicle Touchscreen Input Control Under Motion and Vibration

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing vehicle user interfaces, such as touchscreens, suffer from inaccurate user inputs due to lateral, vertical, and longitudinal forces during vehicle movement, leading to incorrect function activation and potential accidents.

Innovation Solution

A computer-implemented method using a user input model that analyzes user interface and sensor data to interpret user inputs, correcting unintended touches through a machine learning algorithm, compensating for offsets and vibrations, and improving touch accuracy by integrating initial personal calibration, generalized augmented touch data, and real-time interaction analysis.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If a touchscreen user interface is used in a vehicle, then control functions are simplified and operation is accurate when stationary, but touch accuracy deteriorates during vehicle movement due to lateral, vertical and longitudinal forces causing body movements

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveoperation simplicityVSAvoidtouch accuracy
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSMeasurement precision

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary calibration by collecting touch data from multiple users at various vehicle positions and creating a predictive model before actual use. This pre-established model predicts and compensates for body movements during vehicle operation, allowing the system to correct touch coordinates in advance based on anticipated motion patterns.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system continuously monitors vehicle motion data from sensors and feeds this information back to the predictive model in real-time. The model uses this feedback to dynamically adjust touch coordinate predictions, compensating for ongoing vehicle movements and maintaining touch accuracy throughout operation.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

2Device complexity

If touchscreen control elements are used to reduce interior controls, then device complexity is reduced, but reliability deteriorates due to incorrect function activation from inaccurate touches

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecontrol element quantityVSAvoidfunction activation accuracy
Core Design Contradiction:
Device complexityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system implements a feedback loop where vehicle motion data from sensors is continuously fed back to the predictive model. This real-time feedback enables the system to detect and correct touch coordinate deviations caused by vehicle movement, ensuring reliable function activation even with reduced physical controls.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

Solution Approach 2:

The patent replaces traditional mechanical correction methods with a computational approach. Instead of using additional mechanical components to stabilize the touchscreen, the system uses a machine learning model that processes sensor data and mathematically predicts and corrects touch coordinates, substituting mechanical stabilization with intelligent software-based compensation.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

3Measurement precision

If predictive models are trained with personalized calibration data, then touch accuracy for individual users is improved, but data processing complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveindividual user touch accuracyVSAvoidmodel training complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system creates a universal predictive model that serves multiple functions: it can be trained with personalized data for individual users or used in a generalized mode for all users. This multi-functional model reduces data processing complexity by eliminating the need for separate models for each user while still providing personalized accuracy when needed.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Solution Approach 2:

The system allows dynamic adjustment of model parameters based on available data. When personalized calibration data is available, the model adapts to individual user patterns; when not available, it operates with generalized parameters. This parameter flexibility reduces training complexity while maintaining high accuracy across different usage scenarios.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentEP4371798B1Method for controlling at least one user interface of a vehicle
Publication Date: 2026.01.28 VOLVO CAR CORP
  • EP4371798B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP4371798B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP4371798B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

A computer-implemented method for controlling (100) at least one user interface of a vehicle, comprising: providing user interface data (110) of the at least one user interface; providing user input data (120) of an input of at least one user of the at least one user interface; providing a user input model (130) configured to analyze the user input data based on the user interface data and sensor data of the vehicle; and processing the user interface data (140), the user input data by means of the user input model and generating user interface control data.