Apparatus and method for controlling ADB-mode vehicle headlamp

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10960810-B2
Application number	US-201816140011-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 24, 2018
Priority date	Sep 25, 2017
Publication date	Mar 30, 2021
Grant date	Mar 30, 2021

Abstract

An apparatus for controlling an adaptive drive beam mode vehicle headlamp of a subject vehicle travelling a road includes a headlamp driver adapted to drive the vehicle headlamp, a preceding vehicle determining section adapted to determine whether or not a preceding vehicle is travelling ahead of the subject vehicle, a road state determining section adapted to determine whether a state of the road is straight or curved, and a curved-mode illumination intensity pattern outputting section adapted to output a curved-mode illumination intensity pattern to the headlamp driver.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An apparatus for controlling an adaptive drive beam mode vehicle headlamp of a subject vehicle travelling a road, comprising:
a headlamp driver adapted to drive said vehicle headlamp;
a preceding vehicle determining section adapted to determine whether or not a preceding vehicle is travelling ahead of said subject vehicle;
a road state determining section adapted to determine whether a state of said road is straight or curved, when it is determined that said preceding vehicle is travelling ahead of said subject vehicle; and
a curved-mode illumination intensity pattern outputting section adapted to output a curved-mode illumination intensity pattern to said headlamp driver, when it is determined that the state of said road is curved,
said curved-mode illumination intensity pattern having first illumination intensities aimed toward said preceding vehicle, said first illumination intensities being decreased to zero to form a first light shielding region for said preceding vehicle, and having second illumination intensities of areas adjacent to both sides of said first light shielding region, said second illumination intensities being stepwise or continuously increased away from said first light shielding region from zero to a reference value smaller than a maximum value defined by said vehicle headlamp.

2. The apparatus as set forth in claim 1 , further comprising a test-mode illumination intensity pattern outputting section adapted to output a test-mode illumination intensity pattern to said headlamp driver,
said test-mode illumination intensity pattern having third illumination intensities aimed toward said preceding vehicle, said third illumination intensities being decreased to zero to form a second light shielding region, and having fourth illumination intensities of areas adjacent to said light shielding region, said fourth illumination intensities being said reference value,
said road state determining section being adapted:
to operate said test-mode illumination intensity pattern outputting section to output said test-mode illumination intensity pattern to said headlamp driver;
to determine whether or not an illumination intensity of one of the areas immediately adjacent to said second light shielding region received by said subject vehicle is smaller than a threshold value;
to determine that the state of said road is straight, when the illumination intensity of the one of the areas immediately adjacent to said second light shielding region received by said subject vehicle is smaller than said threshold value; and
to determine that the state of said road is curved, when the illumination intensity of the one of the areas immediately adjacent to said second light shielding region received by said subject vehicle is not smaller than said threshold value.

3. The apparatus as set forth in claim 1 , further comprising a vehicle driving state determining section adapted to determine whether a driving state of said subject vehicle is straight or curved,
said vehicle driving state determining section being adapted to cancel determination by said road state determining section that the state of said road is straight, when it is determined that the state of said vehicle is curved,
said vehicle driving state determining section being adapted to cancel determination by said road state determining section that the state of said road is curved, when it is determined that the state of said subject vehicle is straight.

4. The apparatus as set forth in claim 1 , wherein said second illumination intensities are symmetrical with respect to said first light shielding region.

5. The apparatus as set forth in claim 1 , wherein said second illumination intensities are asymmetrical with respect to said first light shielding region.

6. The apparatus as set forth in claim 1 , further comprising a straight-mode illumination intensity pattern outputting section adapted to output a straight-mode illumination intensity pattern to said headlamp driver, when it is determined that the state of said road is straight,
said straight-mode illumination intensity pattern having fifth illumination intensities aimed toward said preceding vehicle, said fifth illumination intensities being decreased to zero to form a third light shielding region, and having sixth illumination intensities of areas adjacent to said third light shielding region, said sixth illumination intensities immediately close to said third light shielding region being larger than said reference value, said sixth illumination intensities apart from said third light shielding region to approach said reference value.

7. An apparatus for controlling an adaptive drive beam mode vehicle headlamp of a subject vehicle travelling a road, comprising:
a headlamp driver adapted to drive said vehicle headlamp;
a preceding vehicle determining section adapted to determine whether or not a preceding vehicle is travelling ahead of said subject vehicle;
a vehicle driving state determining section adapted to determine whether a driving state of said subject vehicle is straight or curved, when it is determined that said preceding vehicle is travelling ahead of said subject vehicle; and
a curved-mode illumination intensity pattern outputting section adapted to output a curved-mode illumination intensity pattern to said headlamp driver, when it is determined that the state of said subject vehicle is curved,
said curved-mode illumination intensity pattern having first illumination intensities aimed toward said preceding vehicle, said first illumination intensities being decreased to zero to form a first light shielding region for said preceding vehicle, and having second illumination intensities of areas adjacent to both sides of said first light shielding region, said second illumination intensities being stepwise or continuously increased away from said first light shielding region from zero to a reference value smaller than a maximum value defined by said vehicle headlamp.

8. The apparatus as set forth in claim 6 , wherein said sixth illumination intensities are symmetrical with respect to said third light shielding region.

9. The apparatus as set forth in claim 7 , further comprising a straight-mode illumination intensity pattern outputting section adapted to output a straight-mode illumination intensity pattern to said headlamp driver, when it is determined that the state of said subject vehicle is straight,
said straight-mode illumination intensity pattern having fifth illumination intensities aimed toward said preceding vehicle, said fifth illumination intensities being decreased to form a third light shielding region, and having sixth illumination intensities of areas adjacent to said fifth light shielding region, said sixth illumination intensities immediately close to said third light shielding region being larger than said reference value.

10. The apparatus as set forth in claim 7 , wherein said vehicle driving state determining section is adapted to operate in accordance with one of steering angle data, gyro sensor data and car navigation data.

11. A method for controlling an adaptive drive beam mode vehicle headlamp of a subject vehicle travelling a road, comprising:
determining whether or not a preceding vehicle is travelling ahead of said subject vehicle;
determining whether a state of said road is straight or curved, when it is determined that said preceding vehicle is travelling ahead of said subject vehicle; and
outputting a curved-mode illumination intensity pattern to a headlamp driver to drive said vehicle headlamp, when it is determined that the state of said road is curved,
said curved-mode illumination intensity patte

Assignees

• Stanley Electric Co Ltd

Inventors

• Waragaya Takeshi
• Uchida Mitsuhiro

Classifications

• B60Q1/085 Primary

  due to special conditions, e.g. adverse weather, type of road, badly illuminated road signs or potential dangers (B60Q1/10, B60Q1/12, B60Q1/1423 take precedence) · CPC title

• H05B47/125

  by using cameras · CPC title

• B60Q1/143 Primary

  combined with another condition, e.g. using vehicle recognition from camera images or activation of wipers · CPC title

• B60Q2300/45

  Special conditions, e.g. pedestrians, road signs or potential dangers · CPC title

• B60Q2300/056

  Special anti-blinding beams, e.g. a standard beam is chopped or moved in order not to blind · CPC title