Vehicle Window Control for Fogged Door Glass Collision Risk
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Solution Overview
Problem
Fogging on vehicle windows, particularly door glass, impairs a driver's visibility of approaching objects, making it difficult to recognize potential collision risks despite advanced radar and alert systems, and conventional defogging methods are insufficiently rapid in high-risk situations.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle control device that includes sensors to detect fogging, opens windows proactively to improve visibility, and issues alerts when contact risk is high, using a processor to determine optimal window opening timing based on fogging position, distance, and driver eye height.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If air is blown toward the window glass to remove fogging, then fogging can be removed from the windshield, but it is difficult to remove fogging from the door glass and the process takes too much time in urgent situations
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary detection of fogging on door glass using a fogging sensor, and when combined with high contact risk detection, proactively opens the window before the driver would manually attempt defogging. This preliminary action of window opening immediately clears visibility without waiting for conventional defogging methods to take effect.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention replaces the conventional mechanical/thermal defogging method (blowing air) with an alternative mechanism (opening the window) to achieve the same goal of clearing fogging. This substitution provides immediate visibility improvement rather than relying on gradual thermal defogging.
2Reliability
If the window remains closed to maintain vehicle security and climate control, then safety and comfort are preserved, but driver visibility of approaching objects is impaired when fogging occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically changes the window state parameter from closed to open based on detected conditions (fogging presence and contact risk level). This parameter change is triggered only when necessary, balancing visibility needs with security and climate control requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses feedback from the fogging sensor and surrounding sensor to determine when to open the window. The feedback loop continuously monitors fogging conditions and contact risk, opening the window only when both conditions indicate a need for improved visibility while maintaining overall vehicle security.
3Productivity
If the window is opened immediately when fogging is detected, then visibility is improved quickly, but vehicle security and climate control are compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The system changes the window state parameter from closed to open, but only when specific parameter thresholds are met (both fogging detection and high contact risk detection). This conditional parameter change ensures visibility improvement occurs only when necessary, preserving security and climate control during normal operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The dual-sensor feedback system prevents premature window opening by requiring confirmation of both fogging presence and high contact risk. This feedback mechanism ensures the window is opened only when the productivity benefit (visibility improvement) justifies the security trade-off.
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle control device comprising a processor that:when it is detected, based on information acquired from a fogging sensor, that a poor visibility region, which is a region around the own vehicle where a driver of the own vehicle cannot visually recognize objects, is present, and when a predetermined condition for determining that a contact risk between a target object located in the poor visibility region and the own vehicle is high is satisfied based on information acquired from a surrounding sensor,executes a window opening process that controls the window opening device so that the window facing the poor visibility region is opened; andexecutes a notification process that controls a notification device (30) so that a predetermined alert is issued to the driver.