EMERGENCY VEHICLE DETECTION DEVICE

An emergency vehicle detection device for visually alerting a driver of an automobile of a nearby emergency vehicle includes a housing, a processor, a sensor assembly, and an indicator. The processor is mounted in the housing and is operatively coupled to the sensor assembly. The sensor assembly is configured to detect an emergency vehicle nearby. The indicator is mounted on the housing and is operatively coupled to the processor. The processor is programmed to activate the indicator to emit an alert signal when the sensor assembly detects the emergency vehicle.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

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THE NAMES OF THE PARTIES TO A JOINT RESEARCH AGREEMENT

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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

(1) Field of the Invention

The disclosure relates to emergency vehicle detection devices and more particularly pertains to a new emergency vehicle detection device for visually alerting a driver of an automobile of a nearby emergency vehicle.

The prior art discloses various emergency vehicle detection devices which provide visual or aural warnings to a driver when an emergency vehicle is nearby. However, the prior art fails to describe such an apparatus which is positionable on a dashboard of an automobile or such an apparatus which uses a camera to identify a presence of an emergency vehicle nearby.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a housing, a processor, a sensor assembly, and an indicator. The processor is mounted in the housing and is operatively coupled to the sensor assembly. The sensor assembly is configured to detect an emergency vehicle nearby. The indicator is mounted on the housing and is operatively coupled to the processor. The processor is programmed to activate the indicator to emit an alert signal when the sensor assembly detects the emergency vehicle.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As best illustrated in FIGS. 1 through 7, the emergency vehicle detection device 10 generally comprises a housing 12 which is sized and configured to rest on a dashboard 38 of an automobile 36. A processor 16 is mounted in the housing 12, and a sensor assembly 18 is operatively coupled to the processor 16. The sensor assembly 18 is configured to detect an emergency vehicle 42 such as an ambulance, a firetruck, a police cruiser, or the like. The sensor assembly 18 comprises a microphone 20 and a camera 22. The processor 16 is programmed to analyze audio captured by the microphone 20 to detect an audible siren corresponding to the emergency vehicle 42 and to analyze images captured by the camera 22 to determine a presence of the emergency vehicle 42. The camera 22 is mounted atop the housing 12 and is oriented to face forwardly with respect to the housing 12. The microphone 20 is positioned adjacent to the camera 22. In some embodiments, the sensor assembly 18 may have a transceiver for detecting radio or other wireless signals emitted by the emergency vehicle 42.

An indicator 24 is mounted on a rear side 14 of the housing 12 and is operatively coupled to the processor 16. The processor 16 is programmed to activate the indicator 24 to emit an alert signal when the sensor assembly 18 detects the emergency vehicle 42. The indicator 24 comprises a light source 26, and the alert signal comprises a light emitted by the light source 26. In other embodiments, the indicator 24 may display a flag or other visual indication signifying the alert signal. The processor 16 may be programmed to activate the indicator 24 only when the processor 16 detects via the sensor assembly 18 that the emergency vehicle 42 is exhibiting signs of operating during an emergency. Such signs may include operating emergency lights on the emergency vehicle 42, operating the alert siren, emitting an emergency radio signal, and the like.

A power supply 28 is electrically coupled to the processor 16 and is positioned in the housing 12. The power supply 28 comprises a battery but may comprise a capacitor or other suitable power storage. A pair of charging ports 30 is mounted on the housing 12 and is electrically coupled to the power supply 28. The charging ports 30 are configured to electrically couple to an external power source to charge the power supply 28. For example, the charging ports 30 may electrically couple to an electrical port 40 in the automobile 36. With reference to FIG. 1, the charging ports 30 are depicted as being universal serial bus (USB) ports, but any suitable electrical port may be used. FIG. 1 also shows a pair of charging cords which may be used to charge the power supply 28, including a USB-to-USB cord 32 and a USB-to-auxiliary power outlet cord 34. The exact plugs used for such a charging cord may vary depending on the types of ports used on the emergency vehicle 42 detection device 10 and the automobile 36.

In use, the emergency vehicle 42 detection device 10 is placed on the dashboard 38 of the automobile 36 or other suitable location to detect the presence of the emergency vehicle 42 near the automobile 36. When the processor 16 detects via the sensor assembly 18 the presence of the emergency vehicle 42, the processor 16 activates the indicator 24 to alert a driver of the automobile 36 to the presence of the emergency vehicle 42.