SYSTEM FOR MONITORING ACCESS TO A VEHICLE

Abstract

A system for monitoring access to a vehicle has a control unit, a plurality of sensor devices configured to be fastened to an outer side of the vehicle, are coupled to the control unit and are configured to capture objects in a three-dimensional manner in a field of view of the sensor devices, and at least one signal output device coupled to the control unit. The sensor devices are configured to capture objects in spatial areas predetermined by the relevant sensor devices and to transmit capture data representing the capture of objects to the control unit. The control unit is configured to receive and use the capture data to detect an object approaching a predefined monitoring area covered by the predetermined spatial areas of the sensor devices. The control unit is configured to transmit a control signal to the signal output device if an object is detected.

Claims

1. A system for monitoring access to a vehicle, comprising: a control unit, a plurality of sensor devices configured to be fastened to an outer side of the vehicle, are coupled to the control unit and are configured to capture objects in a three-dimensional manner in the field of view of the sensor devices, and at least one signal output device which is coupled to the control unit, wherein the sensor devices are configured to capture objects in spatial areas predetermined by the relevant sensor devices and to transmit capture data representing the capture of objects to the control unit, wherein the control unit is configured to receive the capture data and to use the capture data to detect an object approaching a predefined monitoring area covered by the predetermined spatial areas of the sensor devices, wherein the control unit is designed to transmit a control signal to the at least one signal output device if an object is detected, and wherein the signal output device is configured to output a warning signal if the control signal is received.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the sensor devices are LIDAR sensors.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is configured to subdivide the monitoring area into a first capture area and a second capture area, wherein the first capture area is surrounded by the second capture area, and wherein the control unit is configured to transmit a first control signal to the at least one signal output device if an object is detected in the first capture area and to transmit a second control signal to the at least one signal output device if an object is detected in the second capture area.

4. The system according to claim 1, further comprising a camera device as one of the at least one signal output device, wherein the control unit is coupled to the camera device, and wherein the system is configured to at least one of initiate or provide an image recording from the camera device when sending the control signal to the camera device.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is configured to determine the size of an end face of a detected object that is directed to one of the sensor devices and to transmit a control signal to the signal output device only above a predefined minimum size.

6. The system according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is designed to record at least one parameter if an object is detected for a predefined period, which parameter is selected from a group of parameters having: a detection time; a size of the detected object; a speed of the detected object; a position or position profile of the detected object.

7. The system according to claim 1, further comprising a data connection device as one of the at least one signal output device, wherein the data connection device is configured to set up a data connection to a device outside the vehicle and to transmit a warning signal to the device outside the vehicle.

8. An aircraft having a system according to claim 1.

9. The aircraft according to claim 8, wherein the predetermined spatial areas of all sensor devices together contain at least all access openings of the aircraft.

10. The aircraft according to claim 8, wherein one of the sensor devices is arranged on an underside of a tail cone.

11. The aircraft according to claim 8, wherein two of the sensor devices are arranged in an area of a front edge of wings close to a wing root.

12. The aircraft according to claim 8, wherein a sensor device is arranged on a vertical tail unit.

13. The aircraft according to claim 8, further comprising a camera system as a signal output device.

14. The aircraft according to claim 8, further comprising a wireless data connection device as a signal output device.

15. A method of monitoring an area surrounding an aircraft comprising: deploying one or more LIDAR sensors on an aircraft arranged and configured to capture objects in a three-dimensional manner in a field of view of the LIDAR sensors, monitoring an output from the LIDAR sensors.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0035] Further features, advantages and possible applications of the present invention emerge from the following description of the exemplary embodiments and the figures. In this case, all features described and/or illustrated in the figures form the subject matter of the invention alone and in any desired combination even irrespective of their composition in the individual claims or their dependency references. Identical reference signs in the figures still represent identical or similar objects.

[0036] FIGS. 1 to 3 show side, top and front views of an aircraft having a system for monitoring access to the aircraft.

[0037] FIG. 4 shows a schematic block-based illustration of the system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0038] FIGS. 1 to 3 show three different illustrations of an aircraft 2 which is equipped with a system 4 for monitoring access to the aircraft 2. The aircraft 2 has an aircraft fuselage 6, two wings 8, a horizontal tail unit 10 comprising two tail unit halves 12 and a vertical tail unit 13. The outer surfaces of these components define the outer side of the aircraft 2.

[0039] The system 4 has, by way of example, four sensor devices 14, 15, 16 and 18 which are arranged at different positions on the outer side of the aircraft 2. It is noted in this case that not all sensor devices have to be used; in particular, the sensor device 15 is optional. Two front sensor devices 14 and 16 are used, by way of example, and are arranged on a front edge 22 of the wings 8 in the region of a wing root 20. The sensor devices 14, 15, 16 and 18 are preferably in the form of LIDAR sensors which can capture objects in a three-dimensional manner For this purpose, as explained above, laser pulses are sent in different spatial directions and reflection signals are received again. The distance to a captured object can be determined from the time of flight between the emitted laser pulse and the received reflection signal. A predefined spatial volume can be scanned by covering larger angular ranges, in particular, along two spatial axes. In addition to the distance of discrete points, the size of objects can also be detected as a cohesive group of discrete points by means of the scanning A speed of a moving object can also be determined by comparing a plurality of successive scanning operations.

[0040] An environment around the aircraft 2 can consequently be monitored by the sensors 14, 15, 16 and 18. The two front sensor devices 14 and 16 are designed, for example, to cover an angular range of approximately 140, indicated by , from their position. The viewing direction of the sensor devices 14 and 16 faces forwards, that is to say, extends from the front edge 22 to a fuselage nose 24. The angular range preferably extends beyond a longitudinal axis x of the aircraft 2, with the result that the angular ranges of the two sensor devices 14 and 16 overlap in front of the aircraft 2.

[0041] The sensor device 18 is arranged, for example, on an underside of a tail cone 26 and may have a considerably larger capture area of approximately 340. This is indicated by in FIG. 2.

[0042] The optional sensor device 15 arranged on the vertical tail unit 13 can be adapted, in terms of its capture area, to the other sensor devices 14, 16 and 18. However, a more or less large overlapping area of the individual capture areas may also be provided. For example, an angle of 180 or more can be achieved with the sensor device 15, depending on its installation position.

[0043] The sensor devices 14, 15, 16 and 18 consequently make it possible to detect an environment of the aircraft 2 in a substantially complete manner, in which case importance is placed, in particular, on monitoring close to the ground in the case of a large passenger aircraft. In addition to an angular range about a vertical axis z of the aircraft 2, the sensor devices 14 and 16 may also cover an angular range y about a transverse axis y of the aircraft 2. Depending on the installation position of the sensor devices 14 and 16, this angular range can be dimensioned such that the spatial area to be monitored can also extend more or less over the wings 8. FIG. 1 indicates, by way of example, an angular range y of approximately 300.

[0044] As mentioned above, it is conceivable to place one further sensor device or a plurality of further sensor devices on the aircraft 2, which device(s) additionally scan(s) a top side. In this respect, it could be appropriate to fit a further sensor device 15 to the vertical tail unit 13, as respectively indicated in FIGS. 1 to 3.

[0045] The sensor devices 14, 15, 16 and 18 are connected to a control unit 28 which is arranged, merely by way of example, in a front area of the aircraft fuselage 6. In addition to implementing an independent control unit 28, the functions of the latter may also be implemented in a control or computing unit which is already present.

[0046] The control unit 28 is designed to receive capture data from the sensor devices 14, 15, 16 and 18 via a first interface 38. During normal monitoring, the sensor devices 14, 15, 16 and 18 can continuously transmit capture data to the control unit 28. The capture data may be both raw data and already processed data which may contain information relating to the position, size and speed of a captured object. The control unit 28 is designed to use the received capture data from all sensor devices 14, 15, 16 and 18 to detect whether an object is situated in or enters a predefined monitoring area.

[0047] It is also advantageous if the control unit 28 at least roughly knows the geometry of the aircraft 2 as well as the installation positions of the sensor devices 14, 15, 16 and 18 used. The control unit 28 can define a monitoring area 30 around the contour of the aircraft 2, which monitoring area extends outwards by a certain distance from the outer side of the aircraft 2, for example horizontally. It goes without saying that a monitoring area 30 as such may also be defined without knowledge of the geometry of the aircraft 2 and can then be monitored.

[0048] The sensor devices 14, 15, 16 and 18 are placed in such a manner that they jointly cover the monitoring area 30, in particular in an overlapping manner, with the result that an object in the monitoring area 30 is always captured by at least one of the sensor devices 14, 15, 16 and 18. The control unit 28 can calculate an absolute position of the detected objects from the capture data from the sensor devices 14, 15, 16 and 18 and from the known installation positions of the latter. This can be carried out, for instance, by transforming coordinates of a detected object from a local coordinate system, which is assigned to a sensor device, into an aircraft-fixed coordinate system, after which the position of the object in the vehicle-fixed coordinate system is compared with the spatial extent of the monitoring area 30. If an object is in the monitoring area 30 according to this comparison, this object is considered to have been detected in the monitoring area 30.

[0049] If an object is detected in the monitoring area 30, the control unit 28 transmits a control signal 32 to a signal output device 34 via a second interface 40. This signal output device need not necessarily be only an individual signal output device 34, but rather it is appropriate to use a plurality of signal output devices 34 with different functions.

[0050] The signal output device 34 can be designed to output an optical and/or acoustic warning. A further signal output device 34 can be in the form of a camera device 42 which is designed to generate and provide camera images. The camera images can be provided on a storage medium and alternatively or additionally can also be directly transmitted to the aircraft 2 or to the outside via a data connection device 44. The storage medium for storing the camera images can be in the form of a memory unit 36 of the control unit 28. Alternatively or additionally, the storage medium may also be implemented by a memory unit (not illustrated) assigned to the camera device 42.

[0051] The data connection device 44 can be understood as a further signal output device since, after receiving a control signal 32, it initiates a data connection to an external device and forwards information, which is understood as meaning a warning signal or contains the latter, or, in addition to a warning signal transmitted from the data connection device 44 or another component, communicates camera images and parameters to the outside.

[0052] In order to record events, it is advisable to store a plurality of parameters in the memory unit 36 of the control unit 28. These parameters can comprise the detection time, the size of the detected object, the speed of the detected object and/or the position or the position profile of the detected object. The proper function of the system 4 can therefore also be checked if necessary.

[0053] The monitoring process may furthermore also comprise the creation of a plurality of monitoring areas. The monitoring area 30 shown in the figures could be subdivided into two capture areas 30a and 30b, for instance. The first capture area 30a is an inner monitoring area which directly adjoins the outer side of the aircraft 2. The second capture area 30b is arranged on the outside and is at a greater distance from the outer side of the aircraft 2. If both capture areas are used, the capture of an object can consequently be associated with two warning levels. If an object enters the outer, second capture area 30b, the warning should be output with a lower warning level than if an object moves into the first, inner capture area 30a. It goes without saying that a plurality of such capture areas are also conceivable, for instance a third capture area, a fourth capture area etc.

[0054] It is additionally pointed out that having does not exclude any other elements or steps and one or a(n) does not exclude a multiplicity. It is also pointed out that features which have been described with reference to one of the exemplary embodiments above can also be used in combination with other features of other exemplary embodiments described above. Reference signs in the claims should not be considered to be a restriction.

[0055] While at least one exemplary embodiment of the present invention(s) is disclosed herein, it should be understood that modifications, substitutions and alternatives may be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art and can be made without departing from the scope of this disclosure. This disclosure is intended to cover any adaptations or variations of the exemplary embodiment(s). In addition, in this disclosure, the terms comprise or comprising do not exclude other elements or steps, the terms a or one do not exclude a plural number, and the term or means either or both. Furthermore, characteristics or steps which have been described may also be used in combination with other characteristics or steps and in any order unless the disclosure or context suggests otherwise. This disclosure hereby incorporates by reference the complete disclosure of any patent or application from which it claims benefit or priority.