Ford Global Technolgoies, LLC

Ryan Joseph Gorski

John Robert Van Wiemeersch

Mahmoud Yousef Ghannam

Ali Hassani

Hamid M Golgiri

Vivekanandh Elangovan

Tom Nelson

Stuart C Salter

Erick Michael Lavoie

Brendan F Diamond

Howard Paul Tsvi Linden

Daniel M King

Jian Wan

Hemanth Yadav Aradhyula

Ahmet Cinar

Fouad Bounefissa

Erick Michael Lovoie

Jaewon Yoon

William Ko

A method for managing occupant interaction with components of a vehicle includes generating, via a time-of-flight sensor, a point cloud representing a compartment of the vehicle, the point cloud including three-dimensional positional information about the compartment. The method further includes identifying at least one body segment of a user based on the point cloud. The method further includes determining, via processing circuitry in communication with the time-of-flight sensor, a position of at least one feature of the at least one body segment. The method further includes calculating an orientation of the at least one body segment based on the at least one feature. The method further includes estimating an intended task of the user based on the orientation of the at least one body segment. The method further includes generating, via the processing circuitry, a response signal in response to estimation of the intended task.

Systems and methods for managing occupant interaction using depth information

A vehicle for travelling on a roadway with a driver has a driver monitor, a head lamp system, and a controller. The driver monitor senses a driver gaze angle relative to a vehicle heading along the roadway and senses a driver head angle relative to the vehicle heading. The a headlamp system has a steerable headlamp configured to illuminate the roadway with a light beam along a selectable projection angle. The controller is configured to compare the driver gaze angle to a first threshold angle, determine a difference between the driver gaze angle and the driver head angle, and when the driver gaze angle is greater than the first threshold angle and the difference is less than a second threshold angle, then adjust the projection angle to a target angle based on the driver gaze angle.

Adaptively steered vehicle headlamps using driver gaze direction and head direction

A system for secure sensor operation is provided. A sensor circuit includes a smart controller configured to provide trusted data. An operational circuit includes an operational controller configured to, responsive to receipt of a request from the sensor circuit, perform an identity verification using a cryptographic challenge to authenticate the sensor circuit before utilizing the trusted data.

Biometric authenticated vehicle start with paired sensor to key intrustion detection

A damaged portion of a vehicle windshield in an area near a transparent display (TD) of a head up display (HUD) may be treated with a resin. The treated portion may introduce brightness artifacts into an image projected onto the TD. To compensate images projected onto the TD for the brightness artifacts, first pixel intensity adjustment values are received via a touchscreen. Pixels of a reference image are adjusted in accordance with the first pixel intensity adjustment values to provide a reference compensated image which, when projected by a projector of the head up display (HUD) system onto the TD, counters effects of spatially varying reflectance properties of treated portion of the windshield which would otherwise appear were the reference image displayed on the TD without compensation.

Photometric projection compensation for transparent head up display (HUD)

Apparatus and methods for managing HUD power in vehicle head up displays are disclosed. State indications are stored. Based on the state indications a determination is made as to whether a HUD power control condition is met. If a HUD power control condition is met a corresponding HUD power control action is determined. A set of HUD power control commands corresponding to the HUD power control action is sent to the HUD to control the HUD to take the power control action.

Projector power management for head-up displays

A system for a vehicle includes a vehicle processor disposed to control a drive system, and a memory for storing executable instructions. The vehicle processor is programmed to execute the instructions to determine, via the vehicle processor, a localization of a mobile device using a tethered wireless connection between the mobile device and the vehicle, receive, via the processor, an absolute heading of the mobile device, determine, via the vehicle processor, based on the localization of the mobile device, a relative bearing angle from the mobile device to the vehicle. The system may use the tethered wireless connection and the relative bearing angle from the mobile device to the vehicle to determine that a user is actuating a Human Machine Interface (HMI) element indicative of user attention to a remote parking maneuver and complete the remote parking maneuver.

Remote park assist augmented reality user engagement with cameraless detection

A computer includes a processor and a memory, and the memory stores instructions executable to determine a currently activatable feature on a vehicle from a plurality of features; establish negotiations between each of a plurality of Ultra-Wideband (UWB) anchors of the vehicle and at least one mobile device; select a search strategy based on the currently activatable feature; upon selecting the search strategy, during a search iteration, determine distance data to at least one mobile device from a subset of UWB anchors, and inhibit a remainder of the UWB anchors other than the subset; perform a trilateral calculation on the distance data for the mobile device; and actuate a component of the vehicle according to the currently activatable feature based on a result of the trilateral calculation.

Trilateration with ultra-wideband anchors

The disclosure is generally directed to systems and methods for receiving proximity characteristics at a nomadic device, the proximity characteristics including mapped obstruction data identifying locations of one or more obstructions of an area surrounding a vehicle; calculating at last one unobstructed pose orientations for establishing a secure connection between the nomadic device and the vehicle based on the proximity characteristics, the unobstructed pose orientation determined at least in part on the mapped obstruction data; and displaying the unobstructed pose orientation on the nomadic device within an array of augmented reality pose orientations on the nomadic device. In some embodiments, the systems and methods include displaying an interactive overlay as a direction to a user of the nomadic device, the interactive overlay coaching the user to locate to the at least one unobstructive pose orientation.

Systems and methods to compute a vehicle dynamic pose for augmented reality tracking

Systems and methods for reducing latency in vehicle access requests are provided herein. An example method includes receiving a first vehicle access request from a user, determining a pre-authenticated status for the user based on authenticating the user in response to the first vehicle access request, determining a pre-authorized status for the user based on the determination of the pre-authenticated status, receiving a second first vehicle access request from the user, and granting access to the vehicle when the user has the pre-authenticated status. Access to the vehicle can be conditioned upon the pre-authorized status of the user.

Systems and methods for reducing latency in vehicle access requests

A vehicle includes a search system including at least one antenna, a wireless transceiver control module, and a processor. The processor receives a vehicle access request. The processor then sends a search instruction to the wireless transceiver control module to search for an authorized wireless device within a predefined distance of the vehicle. The processor receives a response, to the request, from the wireless transceiver control module indicating search results and a state indicator indicating a state of the search system. When the state indicator indicates a state predefined as corresponding to a final result state for fulfilling the request, the processor utilizes the search results to determine if the access request should be granted and when the state indicator indicates a state predefined as corresponding to an in-progress state, which will result in an improved response at a future time, the processor re-instructs the search and repeats response reception.

Conditional repetitive wireless device searching

A vehicle includes doors, antennas, and processors. Each of the doors include an interface. The processors: (1) define, via the antennas, first zones and a second zone encompassing the first zones and surrounding the vehicle, each of the first zones associated with each of the doors; (2) in response to a mobile device entering the second zone, determine whether the mobile device is authenticated; (3) in response to the mobile device being authenticated, determine whether a user-interaction with the interface of one of the doors has occurred and determine, via the antennas, whether the mobile device is positioned in one of the first zones corresponding to said door; and (4) in response to detecting that the user-interaction has occurred and that the mobile device is positioned in said first zone, cause said door to unlock.

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Grosse Pointe Farms, MI, United States of America

Ryan Joseph Gorski