The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jan. 23, 2024
Filed:
Feb. 10, 2021
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc., Plano, TX (US);
Paul D. Schmalenberg, Pittsburgh, PA (US);
Sean P. Rodrigues, Ann Arbor, MI (US);
Atsushi Iwai, Pittsburgh, PA (US);
TOYOTA MOTOR ENGINEERING & MANUFACTURING NORTH AMERICA, INC., Plano, TX (US);
Abstract
A vehicle includes an interior and an exterior, a surface within the interior, and a movable seat positioned over a first portion of the surface. The vehicle also includes a processor, a seat control system able to move the seat to expose the portion of the surface, and a light source able to illuminate a larger second portion of the surface which includes the first portion. The vehicle further includes a sensor to capture an image of the second portion of the surface, illuminated by the light source, and a cleaning element able to clean the second portion of the surface. The processor is configured to detect foreign material on the second portion of the surface, based on a comparison between the image and a stored image. The processor is also configured to activate the cleaning element, after detecting the foreign material on the second portion of the surface.