VEHICLE HAVING AN ACTUATING APPARATUS FOR A VEHICLE DOOR, ACTUATING APPARATUS AND USE OF AN ACTUATING APPARATUS

Abstract

An actuating apparatus for adjusting a first vehicle door which can be automatically adjusted between a closed position and an open position is used in a vehicle. To this end, the actuating apparatus has a capacitive distance sensor for detecting a movement of a person who is in the vicinity of the vehicle, and also has a control and evaluation unit. The control and evaluation unit is configured to identify a first door actuation request on the basis of the detected movement, and to trigger adjustment of the first vehicle door when the first door actuation request is identified. In this case, a sensor electrode of the capacitive distance sensor is arranged in a vehicle corner region which is associated with the rear of the vehicle.

Claims

1. A vehicle, comprising: a first vehicle door being automatically displaceable between a closed position and an open position; an actuating apparatus for said first vehicle door, said actuating apparatus having a capacitive distance sensor with a sensor electrode for detecting a movement of a person who is in a vicinity of the vehicle, said sensor electrode disposed in a vehicle corner region associated with a rear of the vehicle; and a control and evaluation unit configured for recognizing a first door actuation request on a basis of a detected movement and triggering a displacement of said first vehicle door upon recognition of the first door actuation request.

2. The vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising a steering wheel, said sensor electrode is disposed on a vehicle side opposite a position of said steering wheel.

3. The vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said sensor electrode is curved around a vehicle corner of said vehicle corner region.

4. The vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising a second vehicle door, said control and evaluation unit is configured for recognizing a second door actuation request on a basis of the detected movement and triggering a displacement of said second vehicle door upon recognition of the second door actuation request.

5. The vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said sensor electrode is disposed only in said vehicle corner region.

6. An actuating apparatus for a first vehicle door being automatically displaceable between a closed position and an open position, the actuating apparatus comprising: a capacitive distance sensor for detecting a movement of a person who is in a vicinity of a vehicle, said capacitive distance sensor having a sensor electrode configured for installation in a vehicle corner region associated with a rear of the vehicle; and a control and evaluation unit configured for recognizing a first door actuation request on a basis of a detected movement and triggering a displacement of the first vehicle door upon recognition of the first door actuation request.

7. The actuating apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said sensor electrode is configured to be disposed, in a proper final installation position on the vehicle, on a vehicle side opposite a position of a steering wheel.

8. The actuating apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said sensor electrode is configured to be disposed, in a proper final installation position on the vehicle, so as to be curved around a vehicle corner of the vehicle corner region.

9. The actuating apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said control and evaluation unit is configured for recognizing a second door actuation request on a basis of a detected movement and triggering a displacement of a second vehicle door upon recognition of the second door actuation request.

10. The actuating apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said sensor electrode is configured to be disposed, in a proper final installation position on the vehicle, so as to be only in the vehicle corner region.

11. A method of opening a door of a vehicle, which comprises the steps of: providing an actuating apparatus having a capacitive distance sensor for detecting a movement of a person who is in a vicinity of the vehicle; providing a control and evaluation unit configured for recognizing a first door actuation request for a first vehicle door, which is automatically displaceable between a closed position and an open position, on a basis of a detected movement and triggering a displacement of the first vehicle door upon recognition of the first door actuation request; and disposing a sensor electrode of the capacitive distance sensor in a vehicle corner region which is associated with a rear of the vehicle.

12. The method according to claim 11, which further comprises disposing the sensor electrode of the capacitive distance sensor curved around a vehicle corner of the vehicle corner region.

13. The method according to claim 11, which further comprises disposing the sensor electrode of the capacitive distance sensor only in the vehicle corner region.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

[0026] FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic, top view of a vehicle having an actuating apparatus for a vehicle door according to the invention; and

[0027] FIGS. 2 and 3 are top views showing a view according to FIG. 1 of further exemplary embodiments of the actuating apparatus.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0028] Parts that are the same are always labeled using the same reference numbers in all the figures.

[0029] Referring now to the figures of the drawings in detail and first, particularly to FIG. 1 thereof, there is shown a vehicle 1 which, viewed looking in a direction of travel 2 (forward driving), contains two vehicle doors referred to as front side doors 4 and two vehicle doors referred to as rear side doors 6. Moreover, the vehicle 1 contains another vehicle door, which is disposed at a rear 8 and is referred to as a tailgate 10. In addition, the vehicle 1 contains an actuating apparatus 12 and an actuating motor 14, which is coupled to the tailgate 10 so as to transmit force. The tailgate 10 is therefore configured to be automatically opened and closed, i.e., displaced between an open position and a closed position.

[0030] The actuating apparatus 12 in this case is configured and provided for contactlessly deducing a door actuation request from a person, specifically the vehicle user and, upon recognition of the door actuation request, therefore displacing the tailgate 10. For this purpose, the actuating apparatus 12 contains a capacitive distance sensor 16 having a sensor electrode 18. The distance sensor 16 is configured for detecting an approach and, therefore, the movement of the vehicle user by a (capacitance) measurement relative to ground. For this purpose, the sensor electrode 18, together with a nearest grounded object (the vehicle user), forms a sensor capacitor having a sensor capacitance. The detected values of the sensor capacitance (or a measure of this sensor capacitance such as, e.g., a displacement current) are fed to a control and evaluation unit 20 of the actuating apparatus 12. The control and evaluation unit is configured for recognizing the movement and, on the basis thereof, the door actuation request of the vehicle user on the basis of the changes in the values of the sensor capacitance. Specifically, in this case, the control and evaluation unit 20 compares the detected change in the values of the sensor capacitance to a stored reference curve, which is characteristic for a predefined movement sequence. If there is a sufficient match, i.e., if the change in the values of the sensor capacitance is within a predefined tolerance with respect to the reference curve, the control and evaluation unit 20 deduces the presence of the door actuation request. After that, the control and evaluation unit 20 activates the actuating motor 14 for the purpose of displacing the tailgate 10.

[0031] In the installed state shown, the sensor electrode 18 is oriented parallel to the direction of travel 2 and is disposed in a vehicle corner region, specifically in the right rear (vehicle) corner 22 of the vehicle 1. The sensor electrode 18 is therefore disposed on the side of the vehicle 1 opposite a steering wheel 24. As a result, the sensor electrode 18 and, therefore, also the measurement range of the distance sensor 16, within which the vehicle user issues his door actuation request, is oriented toward the side of the vehicle 1 facing away from traffic, provided the vehicle 1 is parked properly and parallel to the roadway. The vehicle user is therefore protected against the traffic on the roadway.

[0032] Moreover, the sensor electrode 18 is disposed in a bumper 26, which covers the rear 8 of the vehicle 1. This is advantageous since a kick movement in the direction of the sensor electrode 18 is utilized as the movement for the door actuation request. The kick movement is a movement of the foot according to the arrow 28 (illustrated in FIG. 2 by way of example), which movement extends toward and away from the distance sensor 16.

[0033] In an alternative exemplary embodiment according to FIG. 2, the sensor electrode 18 is curved around the corner 22 of the vehicle 1. The kick movement of the vehicle user indicated by the arrow 28 can therefore be carried out in the region of the corner 22 behind the vehicle 1 or laterally next to the vehicle 1. The detection range of the sensor electrode 18 is therefore enlarged.

[0034] In another exemplary embodiment according to FIG. 3, the vehicle 1 contains only one rear side door 6 disposed on the right side of the vehicle. This side door 6 is designed as a sliding door in this case, which can be automatically opened and closed by a second actuating motor 30. In this exemplary embodiment, the actuating apparatus 12 is configured for displacing not only the tailgate 10 but also the side door 6. The tailgate 10, therefore, is a first vehicle door, and the side door 6 is a second vehicle door, the assigned (first or second) actuating motor 14 or 30, respectively, of which is activated by the actuating apparatus 12. The control and evaluation unit 20 of the actuating apparatus 12 is configured, in this case, for distinguishingon the basis of the foot movement of the vehicle usera first door actuation request directed to the displacement of the tailgate 10 from a second door actuation request directed to the displacement of the side door 6. Specifically, a simple kick movement according to the arrow 28 in the direction of the distance sensor 16 is interpreted to be a tailgate-door actuation request (first door actuation request). A double kick movement (i.e., two successive kick movements) is interpreted to be a side door-door actuation request (second door actuation request). If a control and evaluation unit 20 recognizes the double kick movement, it then activates the second actuating motor 30 for the purpose of displacing the side door 6.

[0035] The object of the invention is not limited to the above-described exemplary embodiments. Rather, further embodiments of the invention can be derived from the above description by a person skilled in the art. In particular, the individual features of the invention, which are described on the basis of the different exemplary embodiments, and their variant configurations can also be combined with one another in another manner.

[0036] The following is a summary list of reference numerals and the corresponding structure used in the above description of the invention: [0037] 1 vehicle [0038] 2 direction of travel [0039] 4 side door [0040] 6 side door [0041] 8 rear [0042] 10 tailgate [0043] 12 actuating apparatus [0044] 14 actuating motor [0045] 16 distance sensor [0046] 18 sensor electrode [0047] 20 control and evaluation unit [0048] 22 (vehicle) corner [0049] 24 steering wheel [0050] 26 bumper [0051] 28 arrow [0052] 30 actuating motor