Vehicle Virtual Visor Rate-Limited Opacity Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional sun visors in vehicles are ineffective in consistently blocking sunlight from disrupting the driver's view, requiring frequent adjustments and often obstructing the view of road signs and traffic signals due to their large size and fixed positioning.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle-mounted virtual visor system with a camera and a visor comprising contiguously arranged pixels, where the controller adjusts the opacity of each pixel based on images of the driver's face to block sunlight effectively while minimizing visual disturbances by limiting the rate of change in opacity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If a conventional sun visor is deployed to block sunlight, then the driver's eyes are protected from direct sunlight, but the visor obstructs the view of high mounted road signs and stop lights
Solution Approach 1:
The visor is divided into multiple independently controllable zones or pixels, allowing selective activation of only the portions needed to block sunlight from the driver's eyes, rather than deploying the entire visor surface. This segmentation enables precise control that blocks harmful sunlight while preserving views of road signs and signals in areas where the visor is not activated.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the visor are assigned different optical properties (opaque or transparent) based on local requirements. The controller selectively applies opacity to specific zones that correspond to sunlight paths toward the driver's eyes, while leaving other zones transparent to maintain visibility of road signs and traffic signals.
2Reliability
If a sun visor is frequently adjusted to maintain effective sunlight blocking, then the blocking effectiveness is maintained, but the driver experiences increased distraction and disruption
Solution Approach 1:
The visor transitions from a static, manually adjusted component to a dynamic, automatically controlled system. The controller continuously monitors sunlight conditions and driver position, automatically adjusting the visor's optical state without requiring manual intervention. This dynamic adaptation maintains effective sunlight blocking while eliminating the distraction of frequent manual adjustments.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates feedback mechanisms that monitor sunlight direction, intensity, and driver head position to automatically adjust visor opacity. This closed-loop control ensures the visor responds appropriately to changing conditions, maintaining blocking effectiveness without requiring the driver to manually reposition it, thereby reducing distraction.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the opacity of the visor pixels changes rapidly to adapt to changing sunlight conditions, then the adaptability to new conditions is improved, but visual disturbances and driver distraction increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies rate limiting to the opacity changes of visor pixels, gradually transitioning between optical states rather than making abrupt changes. This cushioning approach smooths the visual transition, preventing sudden opacity shifts that would cause visual disturbances or driver distraction, while still adapting to changing sunlight conditions over time.
4Loss of time
If a large sun visor is used to block sunlight with various head positions, then the frequency of adjustment is reduced, but the obstruction of the driver's view of road signs and stop lights increases
Solution Approach 1:
The visor is divided into multiple independently controllable pixels or zones, allowing selective activation of only the portions needed to block sunlight from the driver's eyes, rather than deploying the entire visor surface. This segmentation enables precise control that blocks harmful sunlight while preserving views of road signs and signals in areas where the visor is not activated.
Solution Approach 2:
The visor system performs multiple functions simultaneously: blocking sunlight from the driver's eyes while maintaining visibility of road signs and traffic signals. By selectively controlling pixel opacity based on real-time conditions, the single visor structure serves both protective and transparent functions in different zones.
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
The system provides continuous blocking of sunlight without frequent adjustments, minimizing disruption to the driver's view by dynamically adjusting the visor's opacity based on the driver's position and sunlight direction, ensuring clear visibility of the road and surroundings.
Implementation Method 1
Each pixel optical state in the plurality of pixel optical states has a different opacity such that the respective pixel blocks a different amount of light from passing through a corresponding area of the visor
Data Source
AI summary
A virtual visor system is disclosed that includes a visor having a plurality of independently operable pixels that are selectively operated with a variable opacity. A camera captures images of the face of a driver or other passenger and, based on the captured images, a controller operates the visor to automatically and selectively darken a limited portion thereof to block the sun or other illumination source from striking the eyes of the driver, while leaving the remainder of the visor transparent. The virtual visor system advantageously limits the rate of change of the opacity of each pixel of the visor while updating the optical state of the visor. In this way, rapid and distracting changes in the optical state of the visor are avoided, thereby improving the safety of the vehicle.