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:
Jul. 29, 2025
Filed:
Apr. 28, 2023
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc., Plano, TX (US);
Saijian Li, Bethesda, MD (US);
Nicholas E. Merkel, Canton, MI (US);
Jose David Hernandez Cardenas, Ann Arbor, MI (US);
Tomoaki Iida, Ann Arbor, MI (US);
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc., Plano, TX (US);
Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha, Toyota, JP;
Abstract
One embodiment of a trailer hitch assist system analyzes image data from a vehicle camera to detect a reference object on the ground in a first location and stores a first position, within the camera's field of view, of the reference object. The first location is directly beneath the hitch ball of the vehicle. The system analyzes additional image data to detect the reference object on the ground in a second location and stores a second position, within the camera's field of view, of the reference object. The second location is directly beneath the trailer coupler of a trailer. The system calculates a spatial relationship between the first and second locations based on the stored first and second positions and camera parameters. Based on the calculated spatial relationship, the vehicle backs autonomously to align the hitch ball and trailer coupler to permit the trailer to be hitched to the vehicle.