The present disclosure generally relates to techniques for implementing a Heads Up Display (HUD) for a vehicle. More specifically, the present disclosure describes a heads up display with image boundary indicators.
This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art, which may be related to various aspects of the present disclosure, which are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present disclosure. Accordingly, it can be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
A heads up display (HUD) provides information to a user and can include projecting a virtual image. The virtual image may be projected to appear at a location viewable to a user, such as a driver, where the virtual image can be seen while the user views another area in physical space. In the example of a driver of a vehicle, the HUD may display an image that is viewable as the driver also views the road ahead, thus avoiding the distraction of taking their eyes off the road to see information traditionally displayed by a cluster and screens on a central panel.
Generally, the present techniques relate to a heads up display. The heads up display includes a picture generation unit configured to generate a virtual image, and boundary indicators disposed outside of an area of the picture generation unit along a perimeter of the picture generation unit. The boundary indicators include light emitting elements configured to generate a light signal to indicate the detection of a potential hazard. The heads up display also includes a controller configured to receive sensor data and activate all or a subset of the boundary indicators in response to the sensor data.
The above-mentioned and other features and advantages of the present disclosure, and the manner of attaining them, may become apparent and be better understood by reference to the following description of one example of the disclosure in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, where:
Correlating reference characters indicate correlating parts throughout the several views. The exemplifications set out herein illustrate examples of the disclosure, in one form, and such exemplifications are not to be construed as limiting in any manner the scope of the disclosure.
One or more specific examples of the present disclosure are described below. In an effort to provide a concise description of these examples, not all features of an actual implementation are described in the specification. It can be appreciated that in the development of any such actual implementation, as in any engineering or design project, numerous implementation-specific decisions may be made to achieve the developers' specific goals, such as compliance with system-related and business-related constraints, which may vary from one implementation to another. Moreover, it can be appreciated that such a development effort might be complex and time consuming, and is a routine undertaking of design, fabrication, and manufacture for those of ordinary skill having the benefit of this disclosure.
The present disclosure describes a heads up display for a vehicle. The heads up display includes a Picture Generation Unit (PGU) that can project a virtual image to a driver by reflecting the projected image from the vehicle's windshield. The virtual image appears to the driver as a translucent image floating within the driver's field of view while looking through the windshield. In this way, the driver can view the information generated by the heads up display without looking away from the road. The heads up display described herein can be configured to deliver any suitable type of information such as vehicle speed, navigation information, radio setting, and others. The image brightness is determined by the intensity of the light generated by the picture generation unit. The image brightness can be adjusted so that the image is easily viewable by the driver, but not overwhelming to the point of being a distraction.
The heads up display is also configured to provide driver safety warnings, such as collision warnings. To ensure that warnings capture the attention of the driver, the brightness of the driver safety warnings are configured to be brighter than the images generated by the heads up display. This is accomplished by disposing a separate set of light emitting devices, such as light emitting diodes (LEDs), around the perimeter of the HUD's picture generation unit to serve as image boundary indicators. The brightness of the image boundary indicators can be controlled separately from the HUD's picture generation unit. Accordingly, increased image brightness can be achieved for safety warnings without changing the design of the picture generation unit and without the risk of overheating the picture generation unit due to the higher light intensity used for the safety warnings.
The boundary indicators 202 may include any suitable type of light emitting devices, including light emitting diodes (LEDs) and incandescent light bulbs, for example. The boundary indicators 202 are used to generate various types of light signals but do not actually generate an image, as that term is used in the present specification. The boundary indicators 202 are located outside of the area of the picture generating unit and surround the picture generation unit 200. The boundary indicators 202 shown in
The heads up display 100 can activate the boundary indicators 202 to present additional information to the driver such as a risk of collision or the presence of some potential hazard. For example, when the vehicle is in reverse, the heads up display 100 can use the boundary indicators 202 to indicate the presence of cross traffic or an obstacle behind the vehicle. The heads up display 100 can also use the boundary indicators 202 to indicate the presence of a traffic slowdown or a sudden reduction of speed by another vehicle in front of the driver's vehicle. The heads up display 100 can also use the boundary indicators 202 to indicate the presence of another vehicle in the driver's blind spot. The boundary indicators 202 can also be used to indicate that there is a risk of collision with a pedestrian or cross traffic at an intersection.
The brightness level of the boundary indicators 202 may be configured to be higher than the picture generation unit 200 at similar color wavelengths. For example, the picture generation unit 200 may be capable of achieving a brightness level of approximately 2000 to 2500 candela per square meter (cd/m2) for red light, whereas the boundary indicators 202 may be configured for a brightness level of more than two times that for red light, for example, 5000 to 8000 cd/m2 or more. In this way, the boundary indicators 202 can achieve a brightness level more likely to attract the driver's attention while the brightness level of the picture generating unit 200 is maintained within a range that is acceptable for normal image generation and safe operation of the picture generation unit 200.
In some embodiments, the boundary indicators 202 may be activated in a way that indicates the direction of the detected hazard. As shown in
The set of boundary indicators 202 above the picture generation unit 200 can be used to indicate a hazard in front of the vehicle, the set of boundary indicators 202 below the picture generation unit 200 can be used to indicate a hazard in behind the vehicle, the set of boundary indicators 202 to the left of the picture generation unit 200 can be used to indicate a hazard to the left of the vehicle, and the set of boundary indicators 202 to the right of the picture generation unit 200 can be used to indicate a hazard to the right of the vehicle. Additionally, different combinations of the four sets of boundary indicators can be used to indicate different directions. For example, the top set and left set may be activated simultaneously to indicate a hazard related to cross traffic in front of the vehicle and approaching from the left, etc.
Various types of information, such as seriousness or proximity of a hazard, can be conveyed by the boundary indicators 202 based on a color of the light emitting elements and whether the light emitting elements are solid or blinking. A blinking pattern or color may be used to indicate a relative distance of a hazard. For example, the blinking pattern may start as a slow blinking pattern to indicate that the hazard is relatively distant, and speed of the blinking pattern may be gradually increased as the hazard gets closer to the vehicle. Different colors may also be used to indicate the relative distance of a hazard. For example, yellow may be used to indicate that the hazard is relatively distant, whereas red may be used to indicate that the hazard is relatively close. In some embodiments, the color may be used to indicate the lack of a hazard. For example, when in reverse, the color green may be used to indicate that there are not obstacles or other hazards detected.
It will be appreciated the particular hazard scenarios and techniques for conveying hazard information described herein are only examples. Various additional techniques for conveying hazard information through the use of the boundary indicators 202 can be implemented depending on the design considerations of a particular implementation and the particular scenarios to be addressed.
The heads up display 100 includes the picture generator unit 200, the boundary indicators 202, and a HUD controller 304. The HUD controller 304 may be implemented as processing hardware or a combination or hardware and software. For example, the HUD controller 304 may be implemented on a dedicated microprocessor such as an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), as software or firmware executing on a general purpose processor, and the like. The HUD controller 304 can receive information from the sensors 302 and control the picture generation unit 200 and the boundary indicators 202 in accordance with its programming.
The HUD 100 projects images and light signals to the user by reflecting the projection toward the windshield, which reflects the image to the user. The HUD controller 304 can control the picture generation unit 200 to create a variety of different images, and can control the boundary indicators 202 to generate a variety of light signals that will be reflected to the user and appear at the outer edges of the image created by the picture generation unit 200. Some examples of possible light signals that can be implemented for different scenarios are described below in reference to
In
As shown in
As shown in
Additionally, the heads up display or other processing unit in the vehicle can use the sensor information to detect a sudden drop in the speed of the forward vehicle 600. Such a drop in speed may be indicative of a sudden braking maneuver or an abrupt traffic slowdown. In such a case, the heads up display can issue a warning signal to the driver by activating the boundary indicators above the picture generation unit. For example, the caution signal may be indicated by activating the boundary indicators to light red.
It will be appreciated that the example signaling techniques described in relation to
At block 702, sensor data is received at the heads up display. The sensor data is received from one or more sensors and/or processing units disposed in the vehicle, and can include any combination of data, such as proximity and distance data, image data, wireless communication data, and others. The sensor data may be raw data received directly from the sensors or may be pre-processed by other processing units within the vehicle.
At block 704, an image is generated at the picture generation unit in response to the sensor data. The image may be an image of a scene outside of the vehicle as captured by a camera, vehicle status information such as instrument cluster data, and others.
At block 706, a boundary indicator is activated in response to the sensor data. The boundary indicator may be activated in response to the detection of a potential hazard, such a risk of collision, or to indicate the absence of a hazard. Activation of the boundary indicator may include controlling the color of the light emitting devices included in the boundary indicator, controlling a blinking pattern of the light emitting devices, or otherwise controlling the visual appearance of the boundary indicator. Any suitable combination of boundary indicators may be activated depending on the information to be conveyed to the driver, such as the direction of the hazard.
The method 700 should not be interpreted as meaning that the blocks are necessarily performed in the order shown. Furthermore, fewer or greater actions can be included in the method 700 depending on the design considerations of a particular implementation.
While the invention may be susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments have been shown by way of example. However, it should be understood that the invention is not intended to be limited to the particular forms disclosed. Rather, the invention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the following appended claims.
This application claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/915,890 filed on Oct. 16, 2019, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety for all purposes.
Number | Date | Country | |
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62915890 | Oct 2019 | US |