Patent Description:
Document <CIT> discloses a method and system for automatically operating a gear in order to counteract vehicle motion when it is determined that the engine of the vehicle is switched off. It may sometimes happen that when drivers get out of the cabin of their heavy-duty vehicle, they have inadvertently forgotten to apply the parking brakes or the parking brakes have simply failed. This may lead to the vehicle starting to move when on an inclined surface, which may result in an accident.

According to a first aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a computer system comprising processing circuitry configured to:.

The first aspect of the disclosure may seek to provide increased safety for events when a driver has omitted to apply the parking brake and has left the cabin. A technical benefit may include that the present system may counteract inadvertent vehicle motion upon determining that the driver is no longer in the cabin and thus not able to counteract the motion. In particular, the present system takes into account the direction of the slope in order to engage either a forward gear or a reverse gear, whereby the movement of the vehicle can be counteracted. For example, if the gradient is such that the vehicle rolls in a forward direction (downward slope), a reverse gear may be engaged, whereas if the gradient is such that the vehicle rolls in a rearward direction (upward slope), a forward gear may be engaged. Applying a gear based on the gradient is also beneficial as it provides an additional level of safety in case the brakes cannot be automatically applied. Thus, the computer system of the present disclosure may, in at least some examples, first attempt to apply the brakes when it has been detected that the driver has left the cabin and the vehicle is rolling, and if the brakes fail, a gear is engaged based on the direction of the gradient. In other examples, the gear may be engaged without first attempting to apply the brakes, or the gear may be engaged simultaneously with attempting to apply the brakes.

The in-cabin sensor may in some examples be configured provide positive confirmation of the cabin being occupied by the driver, wherein lack of information from the in-cabin sensor may be assessed as the driver not being in the cabin. In other examples, the in-cabin sensor may be configured to provide negative confirmation, i.e. sending information to the processing circuitry when the cabin is not occupied by the driver. In still other examples, the in-cabin sensor may be configured to provide both positive and negative confirmation depending on the presence or not of the driver, i.e. sending messages to the processing-circuitry, the informational content either confirming that the driver is inside the cabin, or confirming that the driver is not inside the cabin.

Optionally, in some examples, including in at least one preferred example, the processing circuitry may further be configured to:.

wherein the processing circuitry is configured to perform said act of controlling the gear arrangement after receiving said information indicative of the parking brake being in a released condition. A technical benefit may include that by checking the condition of the parking brake at an early stage before determining to engage a gear, the processing circuitry may have an opportunity to alert the driver such that the driver applies the parking brake, or the processing circuitry may even control the parking brake to become engaged. In case that fails, by acknowledging that the parking brake is in a released condition, for whatever reason, the processing circuitry may afterwards advantageously engage the gear to counteract vehicle movement.

Optionally, in some examples, including in at least one preferred example, the processing circuitry may further be configured to, upon receiving said information indicative of the parking brake being in a released condition and based on the information from the in-cabin sensor and at least one of the gradient determining device and said sensor device:.

wherein the processing circuitry is configured to perform said act of controlling the gear arrangement upon determining that application of the parking brake has failed despite the sending of the instruction message. A technical benefit may include that dual levels of safety is provided. In particular, by detecting that the driver has left the cabin, in addition to detecting a risk of movement (gradient is non-zero) or an actual movement of the vehicle, the processing circuitry may initially attempt to get the parking brake engaged, and if that fails, as a backup, the processing circuitry may engage the gear based on the determined gradient.

Optionally, in some examples, including in at least one preferred example, the processing circuitry may further be configured to, upon determination that the vehicle is still in motion despite the controlling of the gear arrangement:.

A technical benefit may include that it provides a further level of safety. In case the gears have not been successfully engaged, e.g. due to some malfunctioning, the vehicle may still be stopped by engaging the retarder.

As already mentioned above, depending on the direction of a slope in which the vehicle is standing, either a reverse gear or a forward gear may be engaged. This is reflected in the following example.

Optionally, in some examples, including in at least one preferred example, if the information from the gradient determining device is indicative of the vehicle standing in uphill, the processing circuitry is configured to control the gear arrangement to engage a forward gear, whereas if the information from the gradient determining device is indicative of the vehicle standing in downhill, the processing circuitry is configured to control the gear arrangement to engage a reverse gear. A technical benefit may include that by determining the direction of the inclination an appropriate gear may be selected to effectively counteract vehicle motion.

Optionally, in some examples, including in at least one preferred example, if the information from the gradient determining device is indicative of the vehicle being on a substantially horizontal surface, the processing circuitry is configured to control a retarder of the vehicle to become engaged. A technical benefit may include that engaging a retarder may provide a good safety measure on a substantially horizontal surface. In particular, in case of any tolerances, if the substantially horizontal surface has a small inclination in one direction which has not been detected, it may be better to apply the retarder than risking applying an incorrect gear (e.g. forward gear when rear gear should have been applied). Another possible scenario is that even if the surface is substantially horizontal, one or more wheels may stand on a bump or other irregularity in the road surface which may cause the vehicle to be set in motion. Also in this case, if the irregularity has not been detected to determine the possible direction of motion of the vehicle, engaging the retarder may be preferred to avoiding the risk of engaging the incorrect gear.

Optionally, in some examples, including in at least one preferred example, the processing circuitry may further be configured to determine, based on input from a brake pedal sensor or lack of input from the brake pedal sensor, that the brake pedal is not being pressed, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to perform said act of controlling the gear arrangement after determining that the brake pedal is not being pressed. A technical benefit may include that the gear is not engaged unnecessarily. If the processing circuitry determines that the brake pedal is being pressed, then this may be indicative of the driver still being in control, allowing the vehicle to move on purpose. The determination that the brake pedal is not being pressed may also function as redundancy, confirming that the information (or lack of information) from the vehicle sensor that is indicative of the driver being outside of the cabin, is correct.

Optionally, in some examples, including in at least one preferred example, the gradient determining device may be one of an inclination sensor, a gyroscope, an inertial measurement unit (IMU), or a GPS unit. A technical benefit may include that such gradient determining devices may be conveniently installed on a vehicle.

According to a second aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a vehicle comprising the computer system of the first aspect, including any example thereof. The second aspect of the disclosure may seek to provide increased safety for events when a driver has omitted to apply the parking brake and has left the cabin. Technical benefits of the second aspect (and any examples thereof) may include the corresponding technical benefits as discussed above in relation to the first aspect (and any examples thereof).

Optionally, in some examples, including in at least one preferred example, the vehicle may further comprise:.

Technical benefits may include those discussed above in relation to the computer system of the first aspect and examples thereof. The gradient determining device may be any of the examples mentioned above. The in-cabin sensor may have the functionality already discussed above.

According to a third aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a computer-implemented method of counteracting motion of a vehicle having a driver's cabin, the method comprising:.

The third aspect of the disclosure may seek to provide increased safety for events when a driver has omitted to apply the parking brake and has left the cabin. Technical benefits of the third aspect (and any examples thereof) may include the corresponding technical benefits as discussed above in relation to the first aspect (and any examples thereof).

Optionally, in some examples, including in at least one preferred example, the method may further comprise:.

A technical benefit may include that by checking the condition of the parking brake at an early stage before determining to engage a gear, the processing circuitry may have an opportunity to alert the driver such that the driver applies the parking brake, or the processing circuitry may even control the parking brake to become engaged.

Optionally, in some examples, including in at least one preferred example, the method may further comprise, upon receiving said information indicative of the parking brake being in a released condition, and based on the determination that the driver is outside of the cabin and on at least one of the information indicative of the gradient and the information indicative of the vehicle being in motion:.

Optionally, in some examples, including in at least one preferred example, the method may further comprise, upon determination that the vehicle is still in motion despite the controlling of the gear arrangement:.

A technical benefit may include that by determining the direction of the inclination an appropriate gear may be selected to effectively counteract vehicle motion.

A technical benefit may include that engaging a retarder may provide a good safety measure on a substantially horizontal surface.

According to a fourth aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a computer program product comprising program code for performing, when executed by the processing circuitry, the method of the third aspect, including any examples thereof. The fourth aspect of the disclosure may seek to provide increased safety for events when a driver has omitted to apply the parking brake and has left the cabin. Technical benefits of the fourth aspect (and any examples thereof) may include the corresponding technical benefits as discussed above in relation to the first and third aspects (and any examples thereof).

According to a fifth aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions, which when executed by the processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to perform the method of the third aspect, including any examples thereof. The fifth aspect of the disclosure may seek to provide increased safety for events when a driver has omitted to apply the parking brake and has left the cabin. Technical benefits of the fifth aspect (and any examples thereof) may include the corresponding technical benefits as discussed above in relation to the first and third aspects (and any examples thereof).

The disclosed aspects, examples (including any preferred examples), and/or accompanying claims may be suitably combined with each other as would be apparent to anyone of ordinary skill in the art.

There are also disclosed herein computer systems, control units, code modules, computer-implemented methods, computer readable media, and computer program products associated with the above discussed technical benefits.

Examples are described in more detail below with reference to the appended drawings.

The detailed description set forth below provides information and examples of the disclosed technology with sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the disclosure.

The teachings of the present disclosure may be implemented in order to reduce the risk of accidents occurring in case a driver gets out of the cabin of a heavy-duty vehicle and inadvertently forgets to apply the parking brakes. According to the present disclosure, an control action may be taken to counteract vehicle movement.

<FIG> schematically illustrates a vehicle <NUM> according to one example of this disclosure. More specifically, the illustrated vehicle <NUM> is a heavy-duty vehicle combination which comprises a tractor unit <NUM> and a trailer unit <NUM>. The tractor unit <NUM> has three wheel axles <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, each one of the wheel axles <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> having at least one left wheel and at least one right wheel. In this example, the tractor unit <NUM> has a front axle <NUM> and two rear axles <NUM>, <NUM>. One of the rear axles <NUM>, <NUM> may be a lift axle. The trailer unit <NUM> is also illustrated as having three wheel axles <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, each one having at least one left wheel and at least one right wheel. Standard braking of the left and right wheels of the vehicle <NUM> may be controlled by a driver in the cabin <NUM>, using for example a parking brake and/or service brake. The teachings of the present disclosure are not limited to a particular vehicle propulsion system, i.e., the teachings herein may be implemented for vehicles propelled by internal combustion engines, traction batteries, fuel cells, hybrid systems, etc..

<FIG> schematically illustrates an operation of a processing circuitry <NUM> of a computer system <NUM>, in accordance with one example of this disclosure. More specifically, <FIG> illustrates a computer system <NUM> which comprises a processing circuitry <NUM> which is configured to communicate and receive input from and send output to various devices, arrangements and/or systems <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>. The processing circuitry <NUM> is configured to determine, for a vehicle comprising a driver's cabin (such as the cabin <NUM> of the vehicle <NUM> in <FIG>), that an engine or a motor of the vehicle has been turned off. For example, in case the vehicle has an ignition system <NUM>, in which an ignition key can be set in an "on" or "off" state, the processing circuitry <NUM> can obtain information <NUM> about the state and determine, based on the state of the ignition key, whether the engine has been turned off or not.

The processing circuitry <NUM> is configured to receive, from a gradient determining device <NUM> provided on the vehicle, information <NUM> indicative of the gradient of the ground on which the vehicle stands. The gradient determining device <NUM> may, for instance, be an inclination sensor, a gyroscope, an inertial measurement unit (IMU), or a GPS-unit. For example, the gradient of the ground may be such that the vehicle is standing in an uphill slope, in a downhill slope, or on substantially planar ground (no slope).

The processing circuitry <NUM> is configured to receive, from a sensor device <NUM> of the vehicle, information <NUM> indicative of the vehicle being in motion. The sensor device <NUM> may, for instance, comprise a wheel speed sensor, an accelerometer, a camera, etc..

The processing circuitry <NUM> is configured to determine, based on information <NUM> or based on lack of information from an in-cabin sensor <NUM> of the vehicle, that the driver is outside of the cabin. The in-cabin sensor <NUM> may, for instance, include a proximity sensor, a weight sensor in the driver's seat, a camera, etc..

Thus, the processing circuitry <NUM> is configured to receive input information from various devices, arrangements and/or systems <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>. Based on the input information and upon determination that the vehicle has been turned off, and that the driver has left the cabin, and that the vehicle is in motion, the processing circuitry <NUM> can take countermeasures. In particular, the processing circuitry <NUM> may send control instructions <NUM> to a gear arrangement <NUM>. In other words, the processing circuitry <NUM> is configured to control the gear arrangement <NUM> of the vehicle to engage a forward gear or a reverse gear based on the information <NUM> from the gradient determining device <NUM>, in order to counteract movement of the vehicle due to the gradient of the ground.

<FIG> schematically illustrates further operations of a processing circuitry <NUM> of a computer system <NUM>, in accordance with at least some other examples of this disclosure. More specifically, <FIG> illustrates that in addition to the components illustrated in <FIG>, the processing circuitry <NUM> may receive additional input information <NUM> from other devices, represented by the box <NUM> on the left side of the drawing, and may send control instructions <NUM> to other devices, arrangements and/or systems than just the gear arrangement, as represented by the box <NUM> on the right side of the drawing. For instance, in at least some examples, the left side box <NUM> may represent a parking brake sensor, and the right side box <NUM> may represent a parking brake system. The processing circuitry <NUM> may be configured to receive, from the parking brake sensor, information <NUM> indicative of the parking brake of the vehicle being in a released condition. The processing circuitry <NUM> may be configured to perform the act of controlling the gear arrangement <NUM> (by sending control instructions <NUM>) after receiving said information <NUM> indicative of the parking brake being in a released condition. In particular, the processing circuitry <NUM> may suitably initially take action to get the parking brake applied, before proceeding to controlling the gear arrangement <NUM>. For instance, the processing circuitry <NUM> may be configured to, upon receiving said information <NUM> indicative of the parking brake being in a released condition and based on the information from the in-cabin sensor <NUM> and at least one of the gradient determining device <NUM> and said sensor device <NUM>, send an instruction message <NUM> to the parking brake system to apply the parking brake. Thereafter, the processing circuitry <NUM> may perform the act of controlling the gear arrangement <NUM> upon determining that application of the parking brake has failed despite the sending of the instruction message <NUM>.

In at least some examples, the right side box <NUM> in may be considered to instead or additionally represent the presence of a retarder of the vehicle. The processing circuitry <NUM> may be further configured to, upon determination that the vehicle is still in motion despite the controlling of the gear arrangement <NUM>, control the retarder to become engaged for counteracting the vehicle motion.

In at least some examples, the left side box <NUM> may be considered to instead or additionally represent the presence of a brake pedal sensor. The processing circuitry <NUM> may be further configured to determine, based on input information <NUM> from the brake pedal sensor or lack of input information from the brake pedal sensor, that the brake pedal is not being pressed, wherein the processing circuitry <NUM> may perform the act of controlling the gear arrangement <NUM> after determining that the brake pedal is not being pressed. Thus, by determining that the brake pedal is not being pressed, the processing circuitry <NUM> gets an additional indication of the driver probably being outside of the cabin. However, in case the in-cabin sensor <NUM> would malfunction, and the processing circuitry <NUM> determines that the brake pedal is being pressed, then the processing circuitry <NUM> may interpret this as the driver being inside the cabin and being in control of the vehicle.

<FIG> schematically illustrates different scenarios for which the processing circuitry may perform different respective control actions. In <FIG>, a heavy-duty vehicle <NUM> is in an uphill slope <NUM>. In <FIG> the vehicle <NUM> is in a downhill slope <NUM>. In <FIG>, the vehicle <NUM> is on planar ground <NUM>. Assuming that the vehicle <NUM> is equipped with a computer system as disclosed herein (such as discussed above in relation to <FIG> and <FIG>), if the information from the gradient determining device is indicative of the vehicle being in uphill <NUM> (<FIG>) and the processing circuitry has determined that the driver is outside the cabin and the vehicle <NUM> is moving rearwards, then the processing circuitry may control the gear arrangement to engage a forward gear. In contrast, if the information form the gradient determining device is indicative of the vehicle <NUM> being in downhill <NUM> (<FIG>) and is moving forwards even though the driver is not inside the cabin, the processing circuitry may control the gear arrangement to engage a reverse gear. If the information from the gradient determining device is neither indicative of an uphill or downhill location, but rather indicative of the vehicle <NUM> being on a substantially horizontal surface <NUM> (<FIG>), the processing circuitry may control a retarder of the vehicle to become engaged.

<FIG> schematically illustrates a computer-implemented method according to one example of this disclosure. The method may suitably be implemented by a processing circuitry of a computer system. Although different kinds of hill start solutions are available in some heavy-duty vehicles on the market, they will only work when the vehicle is turned on (e.g. engine or motor is tumed on). Instead of connecting a hill start assist solution to a conventional ECU of the vehicle, the processing circuitry of this disclosure may, for instance, comprise an ultra-low power ECU module, thereby being particularly well-suited for operating also when the vehicle is turned off. The method may start once the processing circuitry has been enabled (<NUM>).

Next, the processing circuitry may proceed with receiving input information (<NUM>). If the received input information (<NUM>) indicates that the vehicle (engine/motor) is turned off, such as the ignition key being in an off state, and that the parking brake has not been engaged, and that the vehicle is in motion, and that the ground on which the vehicle is present forms a non-zero gradient, then the processing circuitry may proceed. In particular, the processing circuitry may proceed to check (<NUM>) for brake actuators and brake pedal status and apply brakes. The processing circuitry may check (<NUM>) for driver presence in the cabin. If no driver is present, then the processing circuitry may determine (<NUM>) if the vehicle is in uphill, and in such case a forward gear may be engaged (<NUM>). If the vehicle is not in uphill, and the processing circuitry instead determines (<NUM>) that the vehicle is in downhill, then a reverse gear may be engaged (<NUM>). If the controlling of the gear arrangement is not enough, for example not successful, and the processing circuitry determines (<NUM>) that the vehicle is still moving, then the processing circuitry may start the engine and engage (<NUM>) the retarder in order to get the vehicle into a parked/standstill state (<NUM>).

In a more general form of the computer-implemented method for counteracting motion of a vehicle having a driver's cabin, the method comprises (still with reference to <FIG>, in which some of the previously discussed action boxes may be omitted):.

<FIG> is a schematic diagram of a computer system <NUM> for implementing examples disclosed herein. The computer system <NUM> is adapted to execute instructions from a computer-readable medium to perform these and/or any of the functions or processing described herein. The computer system <NUM> may be connected (e.g., networked) to other machines in a LAN, an intranet, an extranet, or the Internet. While only a single device is illustrated, the computer system <NUM> may include any collection of devices that individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructions to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein. Accordingly, any reference in the disclosure and/or claims to a computer system, computing system, computer device, computing device, control system, control unit, electronic control unit (ECU), processor device, processing circuitry, etc., includes reference to one or more such devices to individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructions to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein. For example, control system may include a single control unit or a plurality of control units connected or otherwise communicatively coupled to each other, such that any performed function may be distributed between the control units as desired. Further, such devices may communicate with each other or other devices by various system architectures, such as directly or via a Controller Area Network (CAN) bus, etc..

The computer system <NUM> may comprise at least one computing device or electronic device capable of including firmware, hardware, and/or executing software instructions to implement the functionality described herein. The computer system <NUM> may include processing circuitry <NUM> (e.g., processing circuitry including one or more processor devices or control units), a memory <NUM>, and a system bus <NUM>. The computer system <NUM> may include at least one computing device having the processing circuitry <NUM>. The system bus <NUM> provides an interface for system components including, but not limited to, the memory <NUM> and the processing circuitry <NUM>. The processing circuitry <NUM> may include any number of hardware components for conducting data or signal processing or for executing computer code stored in memory <NUM>. The processing circuitry <NUM> may, for example, include a general-purpose processor, an application specific processor, a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), a circuit containing processing components, a group of distributed processing components, a group of distributed computers configured for processing, or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. The processing circuitry <NUM> may further include computer executable code that controls operation of the programmable device.

The system bus <NUM> may be any of several types of bus structures that may further interconnect to a memory bus (with or without a memory controller), a peripheral bus, and/or a local bus using any of a variety of bus architectures. The memory <NUM> may be one or more devices for storing data and/or computer code for completing or facilitating methods described herein. The memory <NUM> may include database components, object code components, script components, or other types of information structure for supporting the various activities herein. Any distributed or local memory device may be utilized with the systems and methods of this description. The memory <NUM> may be communicably connected to the processing circuitry <NUM> (e.g., via a circuit or any other wired, wireless, or network connection) and may include computer code for executing one or more processes described herein. The memory <NUM> may include non-volatile memory <NUM> (e.g., read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), etc.), and volatile memory <NUM> (e.g., random-access memory (RAM)), or any other medium which can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of machine-executable instructions or data structures and which can be accessed by a computer or other machine with processing circuitry <NUM>. A basic input/output system (BIOS) <NUM> may be stored in the non-volatile memory <NUM> and can include the basic routines that help to transfer information between elements within the computer system <NUM>.

Computer-code which is hard or soft coded may be provided in the form of one or more modules. The module(s) can be implemented as software and/or hard-coded in circuitry to implement the functionality described herein in whole or in part. The modules may be stored in the storage device <NUM> and/or in the volatile memory <NUM>, which may include an operating system <NUM> and/or one or more program modules <NUM>. All or a portion of the examples disclosed herein may be implemented as a computer program <NUM> stored on a transitory or non-transitory computer-usable or computer-readable storage medium (e.g., single medium or multiple media), such as the storage device <NUM>, which includes complex programming instructions (e.g., complex computer-readable program code) to cause the processing circuitry <NUM> to carry out actions described herein. Thus, the computer-readable program code of the computer program <NUM> can comprise software instructions for implementing the functionality of the examples described herein when executed by the processing circuitry <NUM>. In some examples, the storage device <NUM> may be a computer program product (e.g., readable storage medium) storing the computer program <NUM> thereon, where at least a portion of a computer program <NUM> may be loadable (e.g., into a processor) for implementing the functionality of the examples described herein when executed by the processing circuitry <NUM>. The processing circuitry <NUM> may serve as a controller or control system for the computer system <NUM> that is to implement the functionality described herein.

The computer system <NUM> may include an input device interface <NUM> configured to receive input and selections to be communicated to the computer system <NUM> when executing instructions, such as from a keyboard, mouse, touch-sensitive surface, etc. Such input devices may be connected to the processing circuitry <NUM> through the input device
interface <NUM> coupled to the system bus <NUM> but can be connected through other interfaces, such as a parallel port, an Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) <NUM> serial port, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) port, an IR interface, and the like. The computer system <NUM> may include an output device interface <NUM> configured to forward output, such as to a display, a video display unit (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) or a cathode ray tube (CRT)). The computer system <NUM> may include a communications interface <NUM> suitable for communicating with a network as appropriate or desired.

The operational actions described in any of the exemplary aspects herein are described to provide examples and discussion. The actions may be performed by hardware components, may be embodied in machine-executable instructions to cause a processor to perform the actions, or may be performed by a combination of hardware and software. Although a specific order of method actions may be shown or described, the order of the actions may differ. In addition, two or more actions may be performed concurrently or with partial concurrence.

Example <NUM>: A computer system comprising processing circuitry configured to:.

Example <NUM>: The computer system of Example <NUM>, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:.

wherein the processing circuitry is configured to perform said act of controlling the gear arrangement after receiving said information indicative of the parking brake being in a released condition.

Example <NUM>: The computer system of Example <NUM>, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to, upon receiving said information indicative of the parking brake being in a released condition and based on the information from the in-cabin sensor and at least one of the gradient determining device and said sensor device:.

wherein the processing circuitry is configured to perform said act of controlling the gear arrangement upon determining that application of the parking brake has failed despite the sending of the instruction message.

Example <NUM>: The computer system of any one of Examples <NUM>-<NUM>, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to, upon determination that the vehicle is still in motion despite the controlling of the gear arrangement:.

Example <NUM>: The computer system of any one of Examples <NUM>-<NUM>, wherein if the information from the gradient determining device is indicative of the vehicle standing in uphill, the processing circuitry is configured to control the gear arrangement to engage a forward gear, whereas if the information from the gradient determining device is indicative of the vehicle standing in downhill, the processing circuitry is configured to control the gear arrangement to engage a reverse gear.

Example <NUM>: The computer system of any one of Examples <NUM>-<NUM>, wherein if the information from the gradient determining device is indicative of the vehicle being on a substantially horizontal surface, the processing circuitry is configured to control a retarder of the vehicle to become engaged.

Example <NUM>: The computer system of any of Examples <NUM>-<NUM>, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to determine, based on input from a brake pedal sensor or lack of input from the brake pedal sensor, that the brake pedal is not being pressed, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to perform said act of controlling the gear arrangement after determining that the brake pedal is not being pressed.

Example <NUM>: The computer system of any one of Examples <NUM>-<NUM>, wherein the gradient determining device is one of an inclination sensor, a gyroscope, an inertial measurement unit (IMU), or a GPS unit.

Example <NUM>: A vehicle comprising the computer system of any of Examples <NUM>-<NUM>.

Example <NUM>: The vehicle of Example <NUM>, further comprising:.

Example <NUM>: A computer-implemented method of counteracting motion of a vehicle having a driver's cabin, the method comprising:.

Example <NUM>: The method of Example <NUM>, further comprising:.

wherein said controlling of the gear arrangement is performed after receiving said information indicative of the parking brake being in a released condition.

Example <NUM>: The method of Example <NUM>, further comprising, upon receiving said information indicative of the parking brake being in a released condition, and based on the determination that the driver is outside of the cabin and on at least one of the information indicative of the gradient and the information indicative of the vehicle being in motion:.

wherein said controlling of the gear arrangement is performed upon determining that application of the parking brake has failed despite said sending of the instruction message.

Example <NUM>: The method of any one of Examples <NUM>-<NUM>, further comprising, upon determination that the vehicle is still in motion despite the controlling of the gear arrangement:.

Example <NUM>: The method of any of Examples <NUM>-<NUM>, further comprising:.

wherein said controlling of the gear arrangement is performed after determining that the brake pedal is not being pressed.

Example <NUM>: A computer program product comprising program code for performing, when executed by the processing circuitry, the method of any of Examples <NUM>-<NUM>.

Example <NUM>: A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions, which when executed by the processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to perform the method of any of Examples <NUM>-<NUM>.

It will be further understood that the terms "comprises," "comprising," "includes," and/or "including" when used herein specify the presence of stated features, integers, actions, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, actions, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.

Claim 1:
A computer system comprising processing circuitry (<NUM>) configured to:
- determine, for a vehicle comprising a driver's cabin (<NUM>), that an engine or a motor of the vehicle has been tumed off,
- receive, from a gradient determining device (<NUM>) provided on the vehicle, information indicative of the gradient of the ground on which the vehicle stands,
- receive, from a sensor device (<NUM>) of the vehicle, information indicative of the vehicle being in motion,
- determine, based on information or based on lack of information from an in-cabin sensor (<NUM>) of the vehicle, that the driver is outside of the cabin,
- control a gear arrangement (<NUM>) of the vehicle to engage a forward gear or a reverse gear based on the information from the gradient determining device (<NUM>), in order to counteract movement of the vehicle due to the gradient of the ground.