Abstract:
Automotive vehicles having a manual shift transmission, with driver feedback to indicate when a shift change is recommended or to provide other event notifications.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This patent application claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. provisional application No. 61/815,420, filed Apr. 24, 2013, the full disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention relates in general to driver controls for automotive vehicles with a manual shift transmission, and, more specifically, to driver feedback to indicate when a shift change is recommended or to provide other event notifications. 
         [0003]    Modern powertrain control systems monitor many vehicle parameters and execute sophisticated algorithms to optimize powertrain performance in real time. Depending upon regulatory requirements, the preference of the driver, or other factors, the optimization may be directed to different objectives such as best fuel economy, best power/acceleration, or a tradeoff between them. In an automatic transmission vehicle, the shift points between transmission gears may be determined and implemented by the powertrain controller in accordance with an optimization algorithm. 
         [0004]    In a vehicle with a manually-controlled transmission, the powertrain controller does not implement a gear change. It is determined by the manual action of the driver. Nevertheless, it is common for the powertrain controller to run the algorithm for identifying an optimum time for shifting the gear and to generate a visual display to advise the driver when the optimum shift time occurs. A visual cue has been generated on the instrument cluster telling the driver when he or she should shift for optimal performance and/or increased vehicle fuel economy. This indication is usually in the form of an indicator light or a pop-up icon on a display. These require the driver to divert attention to the instrument cluster which is undesirable. Furthermore, the driver may not notice the visual cue and thus miss the opportunity to achieve better performance. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0005]    The Haptic Feedback Shift Knob of the present invention is a manual transmission shift knob capable of sending tactile, non-visual signals to the driver. When in operation, the device firsts detects if the driver has his or her hand on the shift knob and then sends a tactile pulse to the driver when he or she should shift for greatest performance or best fuel economy. A haptic “pulse” is felt through the shift knob and thus does not require the driver to take his/her eyes and attention away from the road. This improves safety while at the same time increasing fuel economy and vehicle performance. 
         [0006]    The invention is also useful in performance race settings where attention to the road details is imperative for driver success. A race driver may have relied upon watching a tachometer for a desired engine speed to determine when to initiate an upshift or a downshift, which may take more attention than waiting for a simple visual cue. The driver can pay full attention to the road while waiting for the tactile, haptic feedback of the shift knob telling him or her when to shift. Auditory signals can be used in conjunction with the haptic feedback. 
         [0007]    In addition to shift change notifications, the present invention may be configured to provide other driver configurable notifications, warnings, or status changes associated with vehicle systems or the driving situation (e.g., drifting out of a lane). 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0008]      FIG. 1  shows an interior of a vehicle with a manual shift transmission. 
           [0009]      FIG. 2  shows a prior art system for providing a visual cue identifying the moment when a shift should occur. 
           [0010]      FIG. 3  shows a system according to the present invention for providing tactile feedback at the moment a shift should occur. 
           [0011]      FIG. 4  shows a vibrating device to be incorporated with a shift knob. 
           [0012]      FIG. 5  shows an human-machine interface (HMI) for configuring operation of the haptic feedback. 
           [0013]      FIG. 6  is a flowchart of one preferred method of the invention. 
           [0014]      FIG. 7  shows a sequence of events associated with operation of the invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0015]    A vehicle interior shown in  FIG. 1  includes a seat  10  for accommodating a driver so that the driver can operate a steering wheel  11  and a manual gear shift lever  12 . An instrument panel  13  includes display elements and input elements (e.g., pushbuttons or a touchscreen) for a human-machine interface (HMI). The vehicle includes an engine, transmission, electronic controller, sensors, and actuators (not shown) as known in the art for coordinating powertrain operation. 
         [0016]    In  FIG. 2 , an instrument panel display  15  includes a tachometer  16  together with an illuminated icon  17 . Icon  17  is turned on to indicate to the driver the time when an upshift should occur. Another icon (not shown) would be illuminated having a different shape (e.g., pointing down) when the powertrain controller indicates that a downshift should occur. 
         [0017]      FIG. 3  shows a first embodiment of the invention wherein a manual shifter  20  includes a knob or handle  21  at the end of a lever concealed under a boot  22 . A vibrating, haptic feedback device  23  is embedded within knob  21  or mounted on the lever in order to generate tactile vibrations that are perceived by the hand of the driver when it is in contact with knob  21 . Knob  21  also preferably includes a sensor  24  for determining whether the driver&#39;s hand is in contact with knob  21 . Sensor  24  may be a capacitive sensor, optical sensor, or mechanical pressure sensor, for example. Haptic device  23  and sensor  24  are electrically coupled to a controller  25 . Controller  25  may be a standalone controller or can be included within a powertrain control module or a module that controls the instrument cluster, for example. Controller  25  is connected to a bus  28  for communicating with other electric modules and sensors within the vehicle. 
         [0018]    Controller  25  is further connected with an HMI  26  and a sound transducer or speaker  27 . Speaker  27  could be part of an audio entertainment system or a dedicated device to generate a recognizable sound (e.g., an auditory tone or synthesized voice) alerting the driver to shift. The audible feedback can be used either 1) together with the tactile feedback, or 2) only when the driver does not have their hand on the shift knob. This choice can be user configurable. 
         [0019]      FIG. 4  shows an example of an electromechanical vibrating device for use inside the shift knob. This works on the same principle that adds “vibrate” functionality to most cell phones. When a vibration motor  30  is connected to a power source, an off-balance mass  31  is rotated, thereby causing the whole shift knob to shake. 
         [0020]      FIG. 5  shows an HMI display for configuring the haptic feedback system. For example, the driver can turn feedback on or off, and they can selected whether to be alerted by vibration or audio, or both. The driver can select a type of optimization (e.g., either for fuel economy or performance). For the vibratory feedback, a style selection allows the driver to configure the strength of the vibrations between low, medium, and high (e.g., each corresponding to a different level of motor speed or torque). 
         [0021]      FIG. 6  shows one preferred method of the invention. In step  40 , the controller gathers vehicle inputs such as vehicle speed, engine speed (tachometer), throttle or pedal position, driver configured inputs, and other data needed to determine the proper time for shifting the manual transmission. In step  41 , a check is made to determine whether the driver should shift to the next gear (e.g., up or down). If not, then the controller continues to monitor the data in step  40 . If a recommended shift time has occurred, then a check is made in step  42  to determine whether the driver&#39;s hand is on the shift knob (e.g., by checking the output of the knob-mounted sensor). If the hand is present, then the haptic feedback is energized for a predetermined period of time in step  43 . Depending on the configuration, the auditory feedback may also be generated in step  43 . If the hand is not present on the shift knob, then only an auditory feedback can be optionally generated in step  44 . After generating the feedback in steps  43  or  44 , the method returns to step  40  for further monitoring. 
         [0022]    Based on the invention, a typical sequence of events is as shown in  FIG. 7 . At  50 , vehicle data is constantly being received. At  51 , the in-vehicle computer (e.g., powertrain control module) determines that the driver should execute a shift. At  52 , the vibration source in the shift knob is turned on for a short time. As a result, the driver feels the haptic, tactile signal at  53 . At  54 , the driver accordingly upshifts or downshifts at the correct moment without having to direct their vision away from the external environment or road.