Patent ID: 9079499
Filing Date: 2015-07-14
Classification: B60K,B60Q,B60R,G01C,G01S

Abstract:
1. A method for automatically activating a turn signal in a vehicle operated by a human driver, comprising: in a navigation device operating in the vehicle operated by the human driver, receiving a destination; in the navigation device, determining a current location of the vehicle; in the navigation device, determining a route to the destination based on the current location of the vehicle; in the navigation device, generating an instruction for following the determined route, the instruction specifying a maneuver to be performed by the human driver at a specified location; on an output device, and in advance of the vehicle reaching the specified location, outputting the generated instruction to the human driver; subsequent to outputting the generated instruction, and in advance of the specified maneuver being performed by the human driver, determining whether the human driver has manually activated the turn signal to indicate the specified maneuver; and in advance of the vehicle reaching the specified location, and in advance of the specified maneuver being performed by the human driver, and in response to a determination that the human driver of the vehicle has not manually activated the turn signal to indicate the specified maneuver, automatically sending a signal from the navigation device to a turn signal controller to cause the turn signal of the vehicle to be automatically activated, wherein the automatically activated turn signal indicates the maneuver specified by the instruction output to the human driver.