Patent Publication Number: US-2017362861-A1

Title: Touch control of vehicle door locks

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present specification generally relates to control of vehicle door locks and, more specifically, to touch control of vehicle door locks. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Frequently, door lock control switches for vehicles may be located on doors of the vehicles, such as in an armrest area. Door lock control switches located on a particular door may be provided for controlling locking and unlocking of the door lock for that particular door and/or for multiple doors simultaneously. Additional switches may be provided on the driver door for controlling other vehicle components, such as vehicle windows. 
     The door control switches are typically manually actuated, momentary-type switches having a LOCK position, an OPEN position and an OFF position, which is a rest or return to center position where a LOCK/UNLOCK state can be maintained. These door lock control switches may be somewhat small and have correspondingly small actuation areas. Where multiple control switches are provided, an operator may have to feel for and identify the desired control switch. Additionally, it is not uncommon to place other control switches near the door lock control switches, such as window control switches. 
     Accordingly, a need exists for vehicles, systems and methods that facilitate control of vehicle door using touch control. 
     SUMMARY 
     In one embodiment, a vehicle includes a vehicle door including a vehicle door handle that moves a door latch assembly between a latched configuration and an unlatched configuration. A door lock apparatus is operatively connected to the door latch assembly. An electric motor moves the door lock apparatus between a locked configuration to disallow operation of the door latch assembly using the vehicle door handle and an unlocked configuration that allows operation of the door latch assembly using the vehicle door handle. A door lock control system includes a door lock control zone that is provided on the vehicle door handle. The door lock control zone includes a touch sensor that provides a control signal to an ECU based on an operator touch. The ECU operates the electric motor based on the control signal. 
     In another embodiment, a method of controlling a door lock apparatus of a vehicle door is provided. The method includes determining that a touch sensor is actuated by an operator touch using an ECU. The touch sensor is located in a door lock control zone that is provided on a vehicle door handle. It is determined that the touch sensor within the door lock control zone is actuated by another operator touch within a predetermined time period using the ECU. The ECU controls an electric motor that is operatively connected to the door lock apparatus based on the step of determining that the touch sensor within the door lock control zone is actuated by the another operator touch within the predetermined time period. 
     In yet another embodiment, a method of controlling a door lock apparatus of a vehicle door is provided. The method includes determining that a touch sensor is actuated by an operator touch using an ECU for less than a predetermined time period corresponding to a first tap. The touch sensor is located in a door lock control zone that is provided on a vehicle door handle. It is determined that the touch sensor within the door lock control zone is actuated by another operator touch for less than the predetermined time period using the ECU corresponding to a second tap. The ECU controls an electric motor that is operatively connected to the door lock apparatus based on the steps of determining that the touch sensor within the door lock control zone is actuated by the operator touch for less than the predetermined time period corresponding to the first tap and the second tap. 
     These and additional features provided by the embodiments described herein will be more fully understood in view of the following detailed description, in conjunction with the drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The embodiments set forth in the drawings are illustrative and exemplary in nature and not intended to limit the subject matter defined by the claims. The following detailed description of the illustrative embodiments can be understood when read in conjunction with the following drawings, where like structure is indicated with like reference numerals and in which: 
         FIG. 1  is an interior view of a vehicle door of a vehicle including a door lock control zone, according to one or more embodiments shown and described herein; 
         FIG. 2  is a diagrammatic view of a touch sensor for use with the door lock control zone of  FIG. 1 , according to one or more embodiments shown and described herein; 
         FIG. 3  is a diagrammatic view of a door lock control system for the vehicle door of  FIG. 1 , according to one or more embodiments shown and described herein; 
         FIG. 4  is a flow diagram illustrating logic of a body ECU, according to one or more embodiments shown and described herein; and 
         FIG. 5  illustrates a door lock control assembly that used in conjunction with a smart key-type vehicle entry system, according to one or more embodiments shown and described herein. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Embodiments described herein are generally related to vehicles, systems and methods that facilitate control of vehicle door locks. The vehicles include a door lock control system that utilizes touch sensors placed on one or more door handles that can be used to detect presence of a finger or other suitable appendage for controlling operation of the door lock. In some embodiments, the door lock control systems may be provided with the touch sensors to allow for control of the door locks from only inside of the vehicles using the touch sensors. In other embodiments, the door lock control systems may be provided with the touch sensors to allow for control of the door locks from both inside and outside of the vehicles. As one example, the door lock control systems may be used with an electronic key or key fob to allow for controlling of the door locks using the touch sensors from outside the vehicles. 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , a vehicle  10  includes a vehicle door  12  and a door lock control assembly  14 . The door lock control assembly  14  includes a door lock control system, generally referred to as element  16  that can be used to control operation of a power door lock apparatus  18  of the vehicle door  12 . In the illustrated example, the vehicle door  12  may be a front driver&#39;s door; however, the door lock control assembly  14  may be equally applicable to any of the vehicle doors, including a rear door (e.g., of an SUV, van, etc.). 
     The vehicle door  12  may include an outer panel  20  and an inner panel  22  that is connected to the outer panel  20  to define a volume therebetween. The outer panel  20  may be an outer visible panel of a vehicle body  24 , while the inner panel  22  may be an interior door trim panel that is visible from inside the vehicle  10 . A door latch assembly  26  may be located at least partially within the volume between the outer panel  20  and the inner panel  22  of the vehicle door  12 . The door latch assembly  26  may be operatively coupled to a vehicle door handle  28  that can be used to move the door latch assembly  26  between unlatched and latched configurations for opening and closing the vehicle door  12  against the vehicle body  24 . The door latch assembly  26  may be moved from the latched to the unlatched configuration by manually tugging on the vehicle door handle  28 , which may be biased toward the latched configuration. 
     The door lock apparatus  18  may be linked to the door latch assembly  26  and the vehicle door handle  28 . The door lock apparatus  18  can be used to disengage the vehicle door handle  28  from the door latch assembly  26  in a locked configuration, to disallow unlatching of the door latch assembly  26  using the vehicle door handle  28 . The door lock apparatus  18  may be operated a variety of ways. For example, the door lock apparatus  18  may be operated using a door lock pin  30  that extends outwardly from the inner panel  22 . An actuator  32  (e.g., a motor) may be used to operate the door lock apparatus  18  upon user command, as will be described in greater detail below. 
     The inner panel  22  may further include an armrest  34  that extends into a cabin  36  of the vehicle  10 . The armrest  34  may include a handle portion  36  that is provided by an opening  32  that extends into the armrest  34  in a vehicle vertical direction (+/−z). The handle portion  30  can facilitate grasping of the armrest  34  to facilitate opening and closing of the vehicle door  12 . Located forward of the armrest  34  in a vehicle longitudinal direction (+/−x) is the inner vehicle door handle  28 . The vehicle door  12  can be unlatched and opened using the vehicle door handle  28 , as described above. Located on the armrest  34  between the vehicle door handle  28  and the handle portion  36  may be a switch mount assembly  38 . The switch mount assembly  38  may include any number of switches  45  (e.g., momentary switches) that can be moved or toggled between various positions depending on the type of switch. For example, a window control switch may be moved between UP, DOWN and OFF positions. A door lock switch may be moved between LOCK and UNLOCK positions. The door lock switch may be used to activate the actuator  32  to move the door lock apparatus  18  between the lock and unlock configurations. A window lock switch may be provided that can allow the operator to lock movement of passenger windows. 
     The door lock control system  16  includes a door lock control zone  40 . In the illustrated embodiment, the door lock control zone  40  is located on an inner facing surface  42  of the vehicle door handle  28 . While a single door lock control zone  40  is illustrated, there may be multiple door lock control zones on the vehicle door handle  28  or located elsewhere, such as on the inner panel  22 . The door lock control zone  40  may provide a control signal based on occupant touch within the door lock control zone  40  on the vehicle door handle  28 . The door lock control zone  40  may be provided with one or more touch sensors (represented by hatch lines  44 ) that can be activated by the occupant by touch within the door lock control zone  40  from within the vehicle  10  which, in turn, sends a control signal to an electronic control unit (ECU) for a door lock control operation. For example, a body controller may be used to control the actuator  32  to move the door lock apparatus  18  between lock and unlock configurations. 
     In the illustrated example, the door lock control zone  40  is provided on the inner facing surface  42  of the vehicle door handle  28  and provides an occupant touch area for controlling operation of the door lock apparatus  18 . The door lock control zone  40  may encompass an area of the inner facing surface  42 , such as at least about 10 percent, such as at least about 20 percent, such as at least about 30 percent, such as at least about 40 percent, such as at least about 50 percent, such as at least about 60 percent, such as at least about 70 percent, such as at least about 80 percent of the total area of the inner facing surface  42 . In some embodiments, the door lock control zone  40  may encompass the entire area of the inner facing surface  42 . 
     Any suitable touch switch technology can be used. For example, a capacitance switch can be actuated using the occupant&#39;s body capacitance. Referring briefly to  FIG. 2 , the capacitance switch  50  may include a non-conductive panel  52 , for example, that may form the inner facing surface  42  of the vehicle door handle  28 . The non-conductive panel  52  may be formed out of any suitable non-conductive material, such as plastic, glass, metal, etc. An electrode  54  may be placed adjacent the non-conductive panel  52 . When the non-conductive panel is touched by the occupant, a signal may be provided to the ECU  56 . In some embodiments, a piezoelectric sensor may be placed adjacent the panel  52  and function as the touch switch. While a single touch switch is illustrated by  FIG. 3 , multiple touch switches may be used. 
     Indicia may be provided to highlight the door lock control zone  40 . In other embodiments, the door lock control zone  40  may not be visually detectable as it is part of the vehicle door handle  28 . To accomplish this, the door lock control zone  40  may be formed of components that are part of the vehicle door handle and not readily discernible, for example, due to being located behind the inner facing surface  42  and even interior to the vehicle door handle  28 , but nonetheless, can be actuated though occupant touch. 
       FIG. 3  illustrates components of the door lock control system  16 . The door lock control system  16  includes the door lock control zone  40  with touch sensor  44 . The touch sensor  44  is operatively connected to the ECU  56 . The switch mount assembly  38  including the switches  45  may also be connected to the ECU  56 . The ECU  56  is connected to the actuator  32 , which, in turn, actuates the door lock apparatus  18  between the locked configuration and the unlocked configuration based on the occupant touching of the touch sensor  44  defining the door lock control zone  40 . 
     In some embodiments, the door lock control system  16  may utilize one or more preselected operator input sequences using the touch sensor  44 , as opposed to a single touch of any duration. As one example, the ECU  56  may utilize logic saved in memory as machine-readable instructions that looks for multiple occupant contacts or taps with the touch sensor  44  in controlling operation of the actuator  32 . In particular, the ECU  56  may require a double-tap of the touch sensor  44  within a predetermined interval before controlling operation of the actuator  32 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 4 , a flow diagram illustrating logic for the ECU  56  controlling operation of the door lock apparatus  18  is provided based on multi-touching the touch sensor  44  within the door lock control zone  40 . At step  100 , it is determined that the touch sensor  44  within the door lock control zone  40  is touched by an occupant touch. At step  102 , it is determined if the touch sensor  44  within the door lock control zone  40  is touched for less than a predetermined time period (e.g., at most about ¼ second) corresponding to a tap. If it is determined that the touch sensor  44  is touched or pressed for more than the predetermined time period, the occupant touch is not considered a tap and the logic returns to step  100 . If, however, the touch sensor  44  is touched or pressed for less than the predetermined time period, the occupant touch is considered a tap and the logic proceeds to step  104 . At step  104 , it is determined whether the touch sensor  44  of the door lock control zone  40  is touched within another predetermined time period (e.g., at most about ⅓ second). If the touch sensor  44  is not touched within the predetermined time period, the logic returns to step  100 . If the touch sensor  44  is touched within the predetermined time period, it is determined if the touch sensor  44  within the door lock control zone  40  is touched for less than a predetermined time period (e.g., at most about ¼ second) corresponding to a tap at step  106 . If it is determined that the touch sensor  44  is touched for more than the predetermined time period, the occupant touch is not considered a tap and the logic returns to step  100 . If, however, the touch sensor  44  is touched or pressed for less than the predetermined time period, the occupant touch is considered a tap and the ECU  56  controls operation of the actuator  32  accordingly at step  108 . In some embodiments, the ECU  56  may determine (e.g., using a switch or sensor) whether the door lock apparatus  18  is in the locked or unlocked configuration before operation of the actuator  32  (e.g., using a proximity sensor). In some embodiments, the ECU  56  may save the current state (lock or unlock) of the door lock apparatus  18  in memory and operate the actuator  32  accordingly. 
     While the above embodiments may relate to door lock controlling operations using the door lock control zone  40  from within the vehicle, the door lock control system  16  may be used from outside the vehicle  10  in some embodiments. Referring to  FIG. 5 , a vehicle  120  includes a door lock control assembly  122  that is provided with a vehicle door  124  and includes a door lock control system  126 . The door lock control assembly  122  may be used in conjunction with a smart key-type vehicle entry system, referred to generally as element  128 . 
     The smart key vehicle entry system  128  may include a smart key ECU  130  that can communicate with a key fob  132  to lock and unlock a door lock apparatus  134 . The key fob  132  may be a transponder that can communicate with the smart key ECU  130  via various antennas  136 , which may be located at various positions on the vehicle  120 . The antennas  136  may periodically send a signal in a polling fashion that causes the key fob  132  to reply with a unique security code, which is received by the smart key ECU  130  when the key fob  132  is within a predetermined range of the vehicle  120 . Once the security code is received and verified by the vehicle ECU  130 , the smart key ECU  130  may communicate with a body ECU  138  to activate the vehicle door lock system  126 . 
     As discussed above, in some embodiments, a door lock control zone  140  may be provided on an exterior facing surface  142  of a vehicle door handle  144 . The door lock control zone  140  may be provided on the exterior facing surface  142  of the vehicle door handle  144  to allow for touch control of a door lock apparatus  146  from outside of the vehicle  120 . In this embodiment, once the smart key ECU  130  communicates the presence of the smart key fob  132  to the body ECU  138 , the body ECU  138  may look for multiple operator contact (e.g., a double tap) within the door lock control zone  140  in a fashion similar to that described above. 
     The above-described door lock assemblies including the door lock control systems can allow occupant control of vehicle door locks by occupant touch within a door lock control zone. The door lock control zone can be part of a vehicle door handle itself and may be highlighted with indicia, or may not be visually detectable as part of the vehicle door handle. The door lock control zones can provide an increased area for door lock control compared to momentary-type switches, as the entire door lock control zone area can be provided with one or more touch sensors. The door lock control systems can be used in conjunction with other vehicle systems, such as smart key vehicle entry systems and gesture identification systems. For example, a door lock control system may only activate based on an operator input, such as a specific gesture or upon a voice command. While a capacitance touch sensor is described primarily above, other door lock control zones may be used, such as resistive touch sensors and/or piezoelectric touch sensors. 
     While particular embodiments have been illustrated and described herein, it should be understood that various other changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the claimed subject matter. Moreover, although various aspects of the claimed subject matter have been described herein, such aspects need not be utilized in combination. It is therefore intended that the appended claims cover all such changes and modifications that are within the scope of the claimed subject matter.