Abstract:
Methods and systems are provided for a vehicle. The method comprises activating a direction indicator on a vehicle responsive to receiving a user activation input and determining when the vehicle has completed a direction changing maneuver (e.g., lane change or turn). Thereafter, the direction indicator is automatically deactivated responsive to determining that the maneuver has been completed. The system comprises a user activation device and a processor configured to activate one or more of a plurality of vehicular direction indicators responsive to a user activation signal. The processor is also coupled to a plurality of vehicle sensors providing movement data related to the vehicle to the processor. By processing the movement data, the processor automatically deactivates the vehicle direction indicators upon determination that the vehicle has completed a maneuver (e.g., lane change or turn).

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
       [0001]    The inventive subject matter generally relates to vehicular direction indication and more particularly to an automated system and method for vehicular direction indication while determining when a vehicular maneuver has completed. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    Various electromechanical systems for controlling the operation of vehicle direction indicators (commonly referred to as turn signals) are known and widely used in the automotive and related vehicular industries. In conventional automotive vehicles, it is common to have a user (driver) manipulate a direction indication lever to activate one or more direction indicators to indicate an intended direction of the vehicle to those external to the vehicle. Typically, a user can move the direction indication lever into an unlatched or latched position depending upon the amount of movement of the lever. If unlatched, the direction indication lever returns to a neutral position upon release which deactivates the direction indicator(s). Conversely, if the direction indicator lever is latched, it returns to the neutral position after sufficient steering wheel rotation unlatches the lever via mechanical means or the user manually unlatches the lever. 
         [0003]    Relying upon mechanical or manual direction indicator lever control is problematic as all too often a direction indicator remains activated when no direction change or vehicular maneuver is intended. This can be troublesome for other vehicle operators or pedestrians who must decide what action(s) they can or should take given the continuous activation of the direction indicator. 
       BRIEF SUMMARY 
       [0004]    In accordance with an exemplary embodiment, a method for indicating vehicular direction is provided. The method comprises activating a direction indicator on a vehicle responsive to receiving a user activation input and determining when the vehicle has completed a direction changing maneuver (e.g., lane change or turn). Thereafter, automatically deactivating the direction indicator responsive to determining that the maneuver has been completed. 
         [0005]    In accordance with another exemplary embodiment, a system for indicating vehicular direction is provided. The system comprises a user activation device and a processor configured to activate one or more of a plurality of vehicular direction indicators responsive to a user activation signal. The processor is also coupled to a plurality of vehicle sensors providing movement data related to the vehicle to the processor. By processing the movement data, the processor automatically deactivates the vehicle direction indicators upon determination that the vehicle has completed a maneuver (e.g., lane change or turn). 
     
    
     
       DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0006]    The subject matter will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the following drawing figures, wherein like numerals denote like elements, and wherein: 
           [0007]      FIG. 1  is a block diagram of a vehicle according to an exemplary embodiment; 
           [0008]      FIG. 2  is an illustration of user controls for the vehicle of  FIG. 1  according to an exemplary embodiment; 
           [0009]      FIG. 3  is a flow diagram of a method according to an exemplary embodiment; 
           [0010]      FIG. 4  is an exemplary illustration of a vehicular maneuver; 
           [0011]      FIG. 5  is another exemplary illustration of a vehicular maneuver; and 
           [0012]      FIG. 6  is an illustration of user controls for the vehicle of  FIG. 1  in accordance with another exemplary embodiment. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0013]    The following detailed description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the subject matter or the application and uses of the subject matter. Furthermore, there is no intention to be bound by any expressed or implied theory presented in the preceding technical field, background, brief summary or the following detailed description. 
         [0014]      FIG. 1  is a block diagram of a vehicle  100 , according to an exemplary embodiment. The vehicle  100  may be any one of a number of different types of automobiles, such as, for example, a sedan, a wagon, a truck, or a sport utility vehicle (SUV), and may be two-wheel drive (2WD) (i.e., rear-wheel drive or front-wheel drive), four-wheel drive (4WD), or all-wheel drive (AWD). Generally, the vehicle  100  includes a chassis  102 , wheels (or wheels and tires)  104  and direction indicators  106 . Although illustrated as a four-wheeled vehicle, the vehicle  100  may be a two, three, four, or more wheeled vehicle. The vehicle  100  may also incorporate any one of, or combination of, a number of different types of engines (not shown), such as, for example, a gasoline or diesel fueled combustion engine, a flex fuel vehicle (FFV) engine (i.e., an engine that uses a mixture of gasoline and alcohol), a gaseous compound (e.g., hydrogen and/or natural gas) fueled engine, a combustion/electric motor hybrid engine (i.e., such as in a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV)), and an electric motor. 
         [0015]    According to an embodiment, the vehicle  100  includes one or more processors  108  that communicate via a bus  110  to a plurality of controls and/or sensors. The bus  110  may be a serial or parallel bus of any type known in the art including, without limitation, USB, Firewire, a Controller Area Network (CAN—both single and dual wire systems), or a Local Interconnect Network (LIN). 
         [0016]    The bus  110  communitively and operably couples the processor (or multiple processors) with a plurality of controls and sensors such as user controls (e.g., steering wheel and vehicle direction lever)  112 , speed and acceleration (or de-acceleration) sensors  114 , odometer  116 , yaw sensor  118 , global positioning system  120  and wheel (tire) rotation sensor  122 . Although illustrated with one wheel rotation sensor  122 , it will appreciated that each wheel  104  may have a rotation sensor, which may be incorporated into a traction control or anti-lock brake system of the vehicle  100 . The bus  110  also couples the processor  108  with one or more vehicle direction indicators  106 . In one embodiment, the processor can directly control each direction indicator by direct addressing, while in other embodiments, the processor  108  could communicate with a direction indication system (not shown) that in turn would manage activation and deactivation of the direction indicators  106  as controlled by the processor  108 . 
         [0017]    Referring now to  FIG. 2 , exemplary user controls  112  are illustrated and include a steering wheel  200  and a direction indication lever  202 . Unlike conventional direction indication levers, embodiments of the present disclosure eliminates steering wheel based mechanical latching (and unlatching) mechanisms for the advantages afforded by an automated, processor controlled vehicle direction indication system. 
         [0018]    According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, a vehicular change of direction or maneuver is indicated by a user simply moving the direction indication lever  202  in an upward direction  206  or a downward direction  208 . Typically, movement in the upward direction  206  would indicate a user intention for the vehicle to move toward the right (from the viewpoint of the user), while movement in the downward direction  208  would indicate a user intention for the vehicle to move toward the left (e.g., a lane change to the left or a left-hand turn). In one embodiment, the direction indication lever  202  has no latching mechanism whatsoever, and returns to a neutral (centered) position upon release. Accordingly, the direction indication lever  202  includes a cancellation button  204 , which causes the processor  108  to deactivate the direction indicators  106 . In another embodiment, the direction indication lever  202  may have a latch that is automatically released by the processor upon determination that the vehicular direction change or maneuver has been completed. This later embodiment has the advantage of familiar operation (from the user&#39;s point of view) of the direction indication lever  202 , although the direction indication system is functioning in an entirely different manner in accordance with the embodiments of the present disclosure. 
         [0019]    Referring now to  FIG. 3 , a flow diagram  300  illustrating exemplary methods of the present disclosure is shown. In step  302 , a user activates the vehicular direction indication system by moving the direction indication lever ( 202  of  FIG. 2 ). This provides an activation input (or signal) to the processor ( 108  of  FIG. 1 ), which in turn activates one or more direction indicators ( 106  of  FIG. 1 ). As is known, the direction indicators  106  periodically illuminate (or flash) when activated to indicate an intended direction change or maneuver of the vehicle. Next, decision  304  determines whether the user has sent a cancellation input (or signal) to the processor. If the determination of decision  304  is that the user has not cancelled the intended vehicular maneuver, decision  306  determines whether the vehicular maneuver has been completed. That is, according to the various embodiment of the present disclosure, the user simply needs to indicate the direction of an intended vehicular maneuver (be it a lane change or turn) and the processor ( 108  of  FIG. 1 ) determines when the maneuver has been completed and then automatically cancels (or deactivates) the direction indicators ( 106  of  FIG. 1 ) without further user input, including not relying upon steering wheel ( 200  of  FIG. 2 ) rotation. If the determination of decision  306  is that the maneuver is not completed, the routine returns to decision  304  to determine if a user cancellation input (or signal) has been received. If however, the determination of decision  306  is that the maneuver has been completed, or upon determination in decision  304  that a user cancellation input has been received, the routine proceeds to step  308  where the vehicular direction indicators ( 106  of  FIG. 1 ) are deactivated. 
         [0020]    Returning to decision  306  of  FIG. 3 , the present disclosure contemplates a number of embodiments for determination when a vehicular maneuver (e.g., lane change or turn) has been completed. In one embodiment, the processor uses vehicle motion data provided by the global positioning system (GPS) ( 120  of  FIG. 1 ) to determine when a vehicle has moved to a different lane or has made a turn. In another embodiment, the processor computationally determines when the vehicle has completed the maneuver, which can be done in a number of ways with vehicle motion data provided by various sensors such as those illustrate in  FIG. 1 . For example, the processor can determine the distance traveled by the vehicle from the point of receiving the user input (step  302  of  FIG. 3 ) by checking the odometer data (from sensor  116  of  FIG. 1 ), from the GPS ( 120  of  FIG. 1 ) data, by calculating vehicle velocity (e.g., speed or speed and acceleration/de-acceleration from sensor  114  of  FIG. 1 ) over a time interval measure from the point of receiving the user input (step  302  of  FIG. 3 ) or by calculating wheel (tire) rotation data (from sensor  122  of  FIG. 2 ) over a time interval measure from the point of receiving the user input. With distance information, the processor can determine vehicular maneuver progress by computing distance traveled with factors such as steering wheel angle or steering wheel angle rate of change (from user controls  112  of  FIG. 1 ) or vehicle yaw or yaw rate of change (from sensor  118  of  FIG. 2 ). In any of the foregoing embodiments, the processor ( 108  of  FIG. 1 ) determines when the vehicular change of direction or maneuver has been completed and automatically deactivates the direction indicators ( 106  of  FIG. 1 ). 
         [0021]    The multitude of embodiments contemplated by the present disclosure offer several advantages over conventional direction indication systems. Turning now to  FIG. 4  and  FIG. 5 , exemplary vehicle maneuvers are illustrated for facilitating understanding some of these advantages. In  FIG. 4 , an exemplary lane change maneuver is illustrated. For this maneuver, the objective of the processor ( 108  in  FIG. 1 ) is to determine when the vehicle has moved from driving lane  400  to driving lane  401 . In one embodiment, the processor determines when a reference point (e.g., the center or center of gravity  402 ) of the vehicle  100  have moved to a position indicated as  406  in driving lane  401 . The processor can make this determination by comparing GPS data for the reference point  402  to the destination point  406  as provided by the global positioning system ( 120  in  FIG. 1 ). Alternately, the processor can compute when the reference point  402  of the vehicle has moved in the direction indicated by the user input (step  302  in  FIG. 3 ) a distance indicated by  404 , which would place the center of the vehicle at the center of the driving lane  401  at the point indicated at  406 . Such a computation can be made by the processor using a number of sensors to determine with the vehicle has traveled a distance indicated by  410  and the vehicle angular direction (e.g., steering wheel position or yaw) indicated by  408 . 
         [0022]    One of the many advantages afforded by the present disclosure is the ability for the processor to dynamically select, change or adapt (weight) which sensor (or combination of sensors) the processor employs to evaluate vehicle motion data. For example, for dry road conditions (known for example by the windshield wipers being OFF), it may be advantageous to use odometer data to determine when the distance  410  has been traveled. However, in slippery road conditions (determined for example by data from the traction control system), it may be more accurate to determine when the distance  410  has been traveled by using wheel (tire) rotation data from wheel(s) known to have traction during the maneuver. Optionally, it may be advantageous for the processor to compute the distance  410  and vehicle angular direction  408  using multiple sets of motion data from different combination of sensors and weighing the motion data depending upon driving conditions. 
         [0023]    Referring now to  FIG. 5 , another exemplary maneuver (a right-hand turn) is illustrated. In this maneuver, the objective of the processor ( 108  in  FIG. 1 ) is to determine when the vehicle  100  has changed direction from that indicated at  502  to the direction indicated at  504  along a path indicated at  506 . As discuss above, the present disclosure contemplates a number of factors that may be included in vehicle motion data evaluated by the processor to determine when the maneuver has been completed. For example, it may be advantageous to use GPS data (or the compass heading of GPS data) to quickly determine when a turn has been completed. However, in slippery road conditions, it may be advantageous for the processor to dynamically select for factoring into the maneuver determination the vehicle yaw rate (or yaw rate of change) in the event the vehicle loses fraction and spins during the turn maneuver. 
         [0024]    Whether the many embodiments of the present disclosure are implemented with one fixed set of factors for the vehicle motion data or multiple factors dynamically varied and/or weighted according to driving conditions, the present disclosure offers both advantages and convenience to the user of the vehicle over the simple and dated mechanical direction indication system of the past. 
         [0025]    Referring now to  FIG. 6 , an alternative exemplary embodiment of a steering wheel/direction indicator arrangement  600  is illustrated. Since the vehicle direction indicator ( 202  in  FIG. 2 ) no longer requires the mechanical latch and release mechanisms of conventional direction indication systems, a vehicle steering wheel  602  can have direction indicator controls incorporated therein. As can be seen, a right-direction maneuver can be indicated by the user activating the button  604 , while a left-direction maneuver can be indicated by the user activating the button  606 . This allows the user to remain in a driving position and not move a hand or change grip to be able to activate the direction indicator. While illustrated as a button, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the direction indicator controls  604  and  606  may be various switches, slides, optical sensors, heat sensors, touch sensors, etc. for the convenience of the user. 
         [0026]    While at least one exemplary embodiment has been presented in the foregoing detailed description, it should be appreciated that a vast number of variations exist. It should also be appreciated that the exemplary embodiment or exemplary embodiments are only examples, and are not intended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of the inventive subject matter in any way. Rather, the foregoing detailed description will provide those skilled in the art with a convenient road map for implementing the exemplary embodiment or exemplary embodiments. It should be understood that various changes can be made in the function and arrangement of elements without departing from the scope of the inventive subject matter as set forth in the appended claims and the legal equivalents thereof.