The invention relates to an optical arrangement comprising at least one spatial modulator for light, comprising at least one light source and comprising at least one projection region, it being possible for the spatial modulator to be irradiated by the light from the light source and the projection region being connected downstream of the spatial modulator in the beam path of the light, characterized in that the light source can be at least temporarily modulated and the modulator can be controlled such that at least one portion of the projection region can be irradiated by the modulated light, and in that the optical arrangement comprises at least one sensor, by means of which a change to the modulatable light owing to a body approaching and/or retreating and/or being arranged at or in the portion can be detected. The invention further relates to a method using the optical device.

A proximity detection device detects the proximity of an object using a light emitting element and a light receiving element that receives reflected light of irradiation light from the light emitting element reflected by the object. A mirror is provided near the light emitting element to reflect part of the irradiation light emitted from the light emitting element toward an area at which the irradiation light from the light emitting element does not sufficiently arrive, and a mirror is provided near the light receiving element to enable reception of the reflected light from the light emitting element in a wide range.

A spatial sensing region is set in accordance with a spatial sensing function of a first operation detection unit included in a first operation device, and another spatial sensing region is set in accordance with a spatial sensing function of a second operation detection unit included in a second operation device. The first operation device and the second operation device are arranged in a vehicle interior. For example, when the second operation detection unit of the second operation device detects a forward movement of a hand, it is determined that an operator intends to operate the first operation device and control is performed such that a display screen of the first operation device is turned on, for example.

A method for displaying at least one additional item of display content on a display panel which is arranged in an interior of a vehicle, in which at least one sensor is used, using which a spatial corridor in the interior of the vehicle is optically monitored. The spatial corridor is delimited by two virtual boundary surfaces. At least one spatial virtual reference surface is defined in the spatial corridor between the virtual boundary surfaces, to which the at least one additional item of display content is assigned. The at least one sensor is used to detect whether a hand of a user is located in the corridor.

A vehicle shifter interface including a protruding contoured member including an outer surface having a first contour with a round shape and a second contour; a first set of capacitive touch sensor pads disposed on an inner surface of the protruding contoured member in an area underlying the first contour, the first set of capacitive touch sensor pads arranged to provide output signals in response to a rotary movement of a driver's fingers about the round shape of the first contour thereby indicating a change in gear selection; and a second set of capacitive touch sensor pads disposed on the inner surface in an area underlying the second contour, the second set of capacitive touch sensor pads arranged and configured to provide output signals in response to at least one of a position of a driver's finger on the second contour and a change of position of a driver's finger.

An in-vehicle infotainment (IVI) system is described that includes a display device, an input device communicatively coupled to the display device, and one or more sensors disposed proximate to the input device, wherein the IVI system is configured to determine whether a driver or a passenger is utilizing the input device based on a detection by the one or more sensors.

The invention relates to a system comprising several touch-sensitive control elements that are arranged next to each other. It is provided that the control elements are able to communicate with each other via a voltage-controlled peer-to-peer line and determine when a particular control element should actively respond to touches or is deactivated.

Telematics systems and methods are described for generating interactive animated guided user interfaces (GUIs). A telematics cloud platform is configured to receive vehicular telematics data from a telematics device onboard a vehicle. A GUI value compression component determines, based on the vehicular telematics data, a plurality of GUI position values and a plurality of corresponding GUI time values. A geospatial animation app receives the plurality of GUI position values and the plurality of corresponding GUI time values. The geospatial animation app implements an interactive animated GUI that renders a plurality of geospatial graphics or graphical routes on a geographic area map via a display device. The geospatial graphics or graphical routes are rendered to have different visual forms based on differences between respective GUI position values and corresponding GUI time values.

A sensor that includes a switch unit and that detects a pressure applied from the front side to the switch unit or a finger approaching the switch unit from the front side is located on the back side of upholstery. A base member has a protruding portion on its surface. The upholstery includes: a light-transmitting region that is located over a light guide portion of the base member and the switch unit of the sensor and that allows light from a light source to transmit therethrough to the front side; and a non-light-transmitting region that blocks the light from the light source. A raised portion that is raised on the front side of the upholstery is located near the light-transmitting region in the non-light-transmitting region of the upholstery. The protruding portion of the base member is placed in the raised portion from the back side of the upholstery.

A display panel has a first panel side and a second panel side, both capable of displaying graphic display object(s). The display panel has a pixel layer, control circuitry and a sensor unit which identify the presence of at least one person at a predefined threshold distance from the display device and whether the at least one person is on the first panel side or the second panel side. The control circuitry is adapted to enable the displaying of the graphic display object in accordance with a predefined display alignment in one of a first orientation and a second orientation based on a physical environment condition.