JP2023541538A - Method and device for providing information in a vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to enable vehicle occupants to use the time available when traveling in a vehicle as meaningfully and/or enjoyably as possible. A device for providing information in a vehicle, the device detecting individual-related data about occupants of other vehicles and/or vehicle-related data about other vehicles around the vehicle; and/or configured to output data regarding the vehicle to an occupant of the vehicle.

Description

The present invention relates to a method and a corresponding device for providing information about the surroundings of a vehicle to a vehicle occupant or user.

When driving, a vehicle occupant, particularly an autonomous vehicle, has a relatively large amount of time available that does not have to be spent driving the vehicle.

The present document relates to the technical problem of enabling the occupants of a vehicle to use the time available when driving the vehicle as meaningfully and/or as enjoyablely as possible.

This problem is solved by each independent claim. Advantageous embodiments are described inter alia in the dependent claims. Additional features of a claim that is dependent on an independent claim may include all features of the independent claim, both unique and independent, even without the features of the independent claim or only in combination with some of the features of the independent claim. It is pointed out that an independent invention can be formed from the combination of the following, and the invention can be made to the subject matter of an independent claim, a divisional application or a subsequent application. This applies likewise to the technical suggestions stated in the specification, which may form an invention independent of one of the features of the independent claim.

According to one aspect, an apparatus is described for providing information in a vehicle (vehicle is also referred to herein as a host vehicle). The device may be configured to detect individual-related data about occupants of other vehicles and/or vehicle-related data about other vehicles in the vicinity of the vehicle. Other vehicles can be recognized, for example, on the basis of one or more surrounding sensors (in particular one or more cameras) of the vehicle (own vehicle). The device may be configured to receive data regarding the person and/or data regarding the vehicle from another vehicle, in particular in response to a response request for data by the vehicle (own vehicle), via vehicle-to-vehicle communication. It is possible.

Data regarding individuals may include information regarding characteristics (eg, age, nationality, etc.), occupation, and/or abilities of other vehicle occupants. Alternatively or additionally, the data regarding the vehicle may include information about the characteristics and/or the driving route of other vehicles. The scope and depth of information regarding the personal data and/or the vehicle data may be set by other vehicle occupants. At this time, data regarding the individual may be provided by the electronic terminal of the occupant of the other vehicle.

The device is also configured to output personal-related data and/or vehicle-related data to an occupant of the vehicle. In this case, the data relating to the individual and/or the data relating to the vehicle can in particular be outputted visually (on a display of the vehicle or on a terminal of a vehicle occupant). Alternatively or additionally, the data relating to the individual and/or the data relating to the vehicle may be transmitted in particular acoustically and/or acoustically (e.g. via the vehicle's speakers and/or the headphone(s) of the vehicle's occupants). It is possible to output the

In particular, the device may include data relating to the individual and/or the vehicle in an information field overlaid on a pictorial representation of other vehicles (also located on other vehicles), in particular on a pictorial representation of the surroundings around the vehicle. can be configured to display data regarding.

For example, the device may be configured to display an information field in a vehicle window that allows vehicle occupants to see other vehicles (e.g., as Augmented Reality (AR)). It is possible. Alternatively or additionally, the apparatus is configured to display on a display of the vehicle (e.g. a TFT display) a pictorial representation of the surrounding situation with other vehicles based on the image data of the camera of the vehicle. It is possible that The information field can then be output in a pictorial representation on the display.

Thus, with the device it is possible to detect and provide data regarding the person or vehicle of one or more other traffic participants and/or data to the occupants of the vehicle (own vehicle). Therefore, it is possible to improve the comfort of the occupants of the vehicle (particularly in the case of automatic driving).

The device may be configured to detect whether occupants of a vehicle can only see other vehicles or whether occupants of other vehicles can also see. Data regarding an individual may in some cases be output to the vehicle occupant only if it is determined that the vehicle occupant can also see the occupants of other vehicles. Therefore, it is possible to output information in accordance with the purpose of the information. Therefore, comfort for the occupants of the vehicle (own vehicle) can be further improved.

The device may be configured to provide an interactive game, in particular a panel game or a matching game, to an occupant of the vehicle based on data regarding the individual and/or data regarding the vehicle. Therefore, comfort for the occupants of the vehicle (own vehicle) can be further improved.

According to another aspect, a motor vehicle (road vehicle), in particular a private car or a lorry or a bus, is described which includes a control unit and/or device as described herein.

According to another aspect, a method of providing information in a vehicle is described. The method includes detecting individual-related data about occupants of other vehicles and/or vehicle-related data about other vehicles around the vehicle. Additionally, the method includes outputting personal and/or vehicle-related data to an occupant of the vehicle.

According to another aspect, a software (SW) program is described. A software program can be arranged to run on a processor (eg, in a controller of a vehicle) and thereby perform the methods described herein.

According to another aspect, a storage medium is described. The storage medium may include a software program configured to execute on the processor and thereby perform the methods described herein.

It should be noted that the methods, devices, and systems described herein can be used alone or in combination with other methods, devices, and systems described herein. Additionally, aspects of the methods, devices, and systems described herein can be combined with each other in various ways. In particular, it is possible to combine the features of the claims in various ways.

The present invention will be explained in detail below based on examples.

1 is a diagram illustrating exemplary components of a vehicle; FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an exemplary driving situation. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an exemplary driving situation. FIG. 3 illustrates an example graphical output on a display. 1 is a flowchart of an example method of providing information to a vehicle user. FIG.

As explained at the outset, this document relates to the provision of information to users of vehicles, in particular autonomous vehicles. In this connection, FIG. 1 shows at least one vehicle (own vehicle) 100, at least one other traffic participant 112 (for example another vehicle) and possibly a central unit 111 (for example a vehicle external server). An example system 150 is shown having a.

The vehicle 100 comprises a communication unit 104, which communicates with the central unit 111 and/or directly with one or more others via a (wireless) communication connection 114 (e.g. WLAN, 3G, 4G, 5G, etc.). is configured to communicate (to exchange data) with other traffic participants, in particular with other vehicles 112 .

Vehicle 100 includes one or more ambient sensors 102 (e.g., imaging cameras, radar sensors, lidar sensors, ultrasonic sensors, etc.) configured to detect sensor data regarding the surroundings of vehicle 100. has been done. In this specification, the sensor data is also referred to as ambient data. The control unit 101 of the vehicle 100 is configured to detect one or more objects in the surroundings of the vehicle 100, in particular one or more other traffic participants (vehicles) 112, on the basis of ambient data. . Furthermore, the control unit 101 is adapted to operate one or more of the vehicles 100 on the basis of ambient data, in particular on the basis of an ambient model dependent on the ambient data, in order to operate the vehicle 100 in an at least partially or fully automated manner. It is configured to operate a plurality of longitudinal and/or lateral driving actuators (eg steering, drive and/or braking equipment).

Vehicle 100 further includes a user interface 105, which is configured to be integrated with a user of vehicle 100, in particular a passenger and/or driver. User interface 105 may be configured to receive user input, such as a response request for output of information. Additionally, user interface 105 can be configured to output information to a user (eg, via a display of user interface 105).

2a and 2b show an exemplary driving situation in which a vehicle (own vehicle) 110 is traveling in a lane 200, in which one or more other traffic participants, in particular vehicles ) 112 is also located. The control unit 101 may be configured to detect distance information regarding the distance 201 between the vehicle 100 and other traffic participants 112 based on surrounding data.

The control unit 101 is configured to request, on the basis of the communication unit 104, personal and/or vehicle-related data about other traffic participants 112 in the vicinity of the vehicle 100. For example, data relating to individuals and/or data relating to vehicles may be
- the destination of other traffic participants 112,
- the place of departure of other traffic participants 112;
- a travel section that other traffic participants 112 have already traveled;
- the number of other traffic participants or occupants of the vehicle 112; and/or - personal information regarding other traffic participants or occupants of the vehicle 112.

Data regarding other traffic participants 112 can be requested by the user of the vehicle 100 via the user interface 105 of the vehicle 100. In response, a response request can be sent via the communication connection 114 to the central unit 111 (e.g. using C2X communication) or directly to other traffic participants 112, and The information may be provided to vehicle 100 via communication connection 114.

The control unit 101 can also be configured to output personal and/or vehicle-related data about other traffic participants 112 to the user of the vehicle 100 via the user interface 105 . In particular, it is possible to display the data on the display of the user interface 105.

FIG. 3 shows an example pictorial representation 300 that may be output to a display of user interface 105. As shown in FIG. In the pictorial representation 300, a lane 301 driven by the vehicle 100 can be graphically depicted. Additionally, one or more other traffic participants 312 may be illustrated. Further, depending on the case, it is possible to illustrate the own vehicle 310. The visual representation 300 may then include a video playback of the surroundings of the vehicle 100. Alternatively, the pictorial representation 300 may include a graphical representation of the current surrounding situation based on graphical symbols 301, 310, 312.

The pictorial representation 300 further includes one or more information fields 313 about one or more other traffic participants 112, 312. At this time, the information field 313 about the other traffic participants 112, 312 can be displayed in the immediate vicinity of the traffic participant 112 or the symbol 312 of the traffic participant 112. The information field 313 about the traffic participant 112 may contain personal and/or vehicle-related data about other traffic participants 112, 312.

Thus, at least two vehicles 100, 112 pass alongside each other (e.g. during an overtaking process, when passing on a highway, etc.), when the vehicles approach each other, exchanging e.g. via vehicle-to-vehicle communication (C2C). It is possible to consider situations in which they recognize each other based on GPS coordinates or using sensors 102 of a driver assistance system. In this case, for example, the smartphones of one or more occupants can be used as portable computers, and the portable computers transmit data (eg, history, interests, etc.) about individuals (eg, via Bluetooth) to each individual. The information is transmitted to the vehicles 100, 112. Data relating to individuals can also be communicated from vehicle 112 to other vehicles 100 via vehicle-to-vehicle communications (eg WLAN). At this time, data regarding individuals can be anonymized in stages. In this case, the disclosure can be limited and selectively made according to, for example, a predetermined classification, such as hobbies, interests, occupations, etc. Data about an individual may be anonymized in stages (e.g., stage 0: the individual is anonymized; stage 1: the individual is partially anonymized; stage 2: not anonymized, and thus , complete profile with name, contact data, etc.).

Algorithms in host vehicle 100 may be configured to access data regarding the individuals of one or more surrounding traffic participants or one or more occupants of vehicle 112 . The detected data can be shown (e.g. by projection) on a display and/or monitor or on a windshield of the vehicle 100, so that (in particular when the occupants of the own vehicle 100 see other vehicles 112 through the windshield) b) A vehicle 112 driving nearby obtains an overlay 313 with information.

The information provided may depend on the anonymization stage. For example, a) "The other vehicle has a pilot on board," b) "The other vehicle has a pilot from airline X with aircraft type Y on board," c) "The other vehicle has a pilot on board." Mr. Muller, a pilot for airline company X, is on board aircraft type Y to go to work. It is also possible to search for additional information via the search function, for example about the occupational profile "Pilot", about airline company For example from one or more Internet-based databases).

Therefore, information regarding the occupants of the own vehicle 100 can be obtained in particular during automated driving via data processing (Internet-based databases, data concerning the individuals of the occupants of one or more traffic participants in the vicinity of the vehicle 100 and/or data concerning the vehicle). A system 150 is described that uses communication technology to provide additional information about a computer. Here, instead of or in addition to data regarding individuals, it is possible to detect and/or communicate data regarding the vehicle of one or more traffic participants 112.

Therefore, the display of the own vehicle 100 (e.g. a projected display on a vehicle window glass or a TFT display) may include (e.g. the year of the vehicle, the power output, the total mileage and/or annual mileage, the current number of kilometers for the day); Information regarding other vehicles 112 (such as origin, etc.) may be displayed. For example, it is possible to display "Vehicle A departed from departure point Z1 to destination Z2 at time T."

In order to be able to provide entertainment, for example during autonomous driving, the control unit 101 may optionally play a matching game and/or with data relating to the vehicle or data relating to the individual of one or more other traffic participants 112. It is possible to play panel games. For example, in the case of a matching game, three vehicles in surrounding lanes can be identified via Augmented Reality (AR) on the vehicle window glass to identify which car has already been on the highway for the longest time today (in terms of time). or the longest distance (in terms of kilometers traveled that day)? Assign the vehicles in order of the number of kilometers traveled" or "Three vehicles labeled with the occupations Doctor, Farmer, and Judge. are grouped by the question "Please assign correctly to". For example, the output could be for a panel game: What is the occupation of the vehicle occupant in your right lane? ``a) a butcher, b) a baker, c) a politician'' or ``Which car has just returned from vacation?''

Therefore, for the user of the own vehicle 100, when looking out through the window of the own vehicle 100, it is possible for additional information to be brought to the window so that one or more vehicles of the surrounding traffic 112 can be characterized (eg, colored boxes, borders, etc.) and additional information can be overlaid. The real external world can also be captured by one or more on-vehicle cameras 102 of the own vehicle 100 and reproduced on the monitor or display of the vehicle 100.

The data can be displayed or visualized in different forms: in a head-up display; in a monitor, e.g. rear monitor, panoramic monitor; in projection on a window glass or on the road; in a display on a vehicle occupant's portable terminal, e.g. a smartphone or tablet. can be done.

Information about other traffic participants 112 outputted in own vehicle 100 may depend on distance 201 of own vehicle 100 with respect to other traffic participants 112 . If the occupant of the own vehicle 100 does not make eye contact with, for example, an occupant of another vehicle 112, data relating to the vehicle may be primarily used or output in some cases (because the occupant of the own vehicle This is because the occupant of vehicle 100 cannot recognize one or more occupants of the other vehicle 112). On the other hand, if the occupant of own vehicle 100 makes eye contact with the occupant of another vehicle 112, data regarding the individual and/or data regarding the vehicle may be used and/or output in some cases.

As already mentioned above, data concerning the individuality of the occupant of the vehicle 112 can be transmitted from the occupant's electronic terminal to the vehicle 112 and/or the central unit 111 (for example via Bluetooth or WLAN). Furthermore, data regarding the vehicle can be communicated to the central unit 111. Personal-related data and/or vehicle-related data can be transmitted from other vehicles 112 and/or central unit 111 to own vehicle 100 via vehicle-to-vehicle communication. The occupants of the vehicle 100 can then view the personal data and/or the vehicle data together with additional background information in the information overview.

4, a flowchart of an example (possibly computer-implemented) method 400 for providing information in vehicle 100 is shown.

Method 400 includes detecting 401 personal data about occupants of other vehicles 112 and/or vehicle data about vehicle 112 in the vicinity of vehicle 100 . At this time, the range of personal data and/or vehicle data provided from the other vehicle 112 can be set by the occupant of the other vehicle 112.

The method 400 further includes outputting 402 personal and/or vehicle data to an occupant of the vehicle 100 (eg, during a panel game and/or a matching game). Therefore, it is possible to improve the comfort for the occupants of the vehicle 100, especially in the case of automatic driving.

The invention is not limited to the embodiments shown. In particular, it should be noted that the specification and drawings serve to explain the principles of the proposed method, apparatus and system by way of example only.

Claims (10)

A device (101) for providing information in a vehicle (100), the device (101) comprising:
- detecting personal data about occupants of other vehicles (112) and/or vehicle data about other vehicles (112) in the vicinity of the vehicle (100);
- A device, characterized in that it is configured to output personal-related data and/or vehicle-related data to an occupant of a vehicle (100). Device (101) according to claim 1, characterized in that the data concerning the individual comprises information about the characteristics, the occupation and/or the abilities of the occupants of the other vehicle (112). . Device (101) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the data regarding the vehicle includes information about the characteristics and/or the driving route of other vehicles (112). 4. The device according to claim 1, wherein the device (101) is configured to receive personal-related data and/or vehicle-related data from another vehicle (112) via a vehicle-to-vehicle communication connection. The device (101) according to any one of the items. the device (101) is configured to display data regarding the person and/or data regarding the vehicle in an information field (313) superimposed with a pictorial representation (300) of another vehicle (112); Device (101) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: that the device (101) is configured to display an information field (313) on the window of the vehicle (100) through which the occupants of the vehicle (100) can see other vehicles (100); Device (101) according to claim 5, characterized in that: The device (101) is
- displaying on the display of the vehicle (100) a pictorial representation (300) of the surrounding situation with other vehicles (112) based on the image data of the camera (102) of the vehicle (100);
- Device (101) according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that it is adapted to display an information field (313) in a pictorial representation (300) on a display. The device (101) is
- specifying whether the occupants of the vehicle (100) can only see the other vehicle (112) or whether the occupants of the other vehicle (112) can also see;
- A claim characterized in that the data relating to an individual is output to the occupant of the vehicle (100) only when the occupant of the vehicle (100) can also see the occupant of another vehicle (112). The device (101) according to any one of items 1 to 7. characterized in that the device (101) is configured to provide an interactive game, in particular a panel game or a matching game, to the occupants of the vehicle (100) based on data regarding the individual and/or data regarding the vehicle; A device (101) according to any one of claims 1 to 8. A method (400) of providing information in a vehicle (100), the method (400) comprising:
- detecting personal data about occupants of other vehicles (112) and/or vehicle data about other vehicles (112) in the vicinity of the vehicle (100);
- A method characterized in that it comprises outputting personal-related data and/or vehicle-related data to the occupants of the vehicle (100).

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