VEHICLE LIGHTING DEVICE AND METHOD FOR OPERATING VEHICLE LIGHTING DEVICE

Abstract

A lighting device for a vehicle has at least one headlamp having a plurality of lighting elements which are individually controllable. A method of controlling the lighting device includes detecting an activated state of the at least one headlamp;

detecting a body to be protected from glare; determining a glare suppression angular range based on an extent and position of the body; and determining at least one transition angular range between the glare suppression angular range and a fully illuminated angular range. The light intensity of the glare suppression angular range is set below a specified limit The light intensity of the transition angular range depends on a distance of a beam angle of the individual lighting elements from the glare suppression angular range, wherein the light intensity increases with increasing distance.

Claims

1. A method for operating a lighting device for a vehicle, wherein the lighting device comprises at least one headlamp having a plurality of lighting elements, wherein a light intensity of each lighting element is individually controllable, the method comprising the steps of: detecting an activated state of the at least one headlamp; detecting a body to be protected from glare; determining a glare suppression angular range based on a determined extent and position of the detected body; determining at least one transition angular range adjacent to the glare suppression angular range; controlling the light intensity of the lighting elements illuminating the glare suppression angular range to below a specified limit; and controlling the light intensity of the lighting elements illuminating the transition angular range according to a distance of a respective beam angle of light generated by individual lighting elements from the glare suppression angular range, wherein the light intensity increases as the distance increases.

2. The method according to claim 1 wherein the at least one transition angular range adjacent is between the glare suppression angular range and a fully illuminated angular range.

3. The method according to claim 1 wherein the recited steps are repeated continuously.

4. The method according to claim 1 wherein the distance is an angular distance, wherein the light intensity of at least one lighting element which illuminates at least one transition angular range is controlled as a function of the respective angular distance of the respective beam angle of the lighting element from an angular limit of the glare suppression angular range according to a predetermined curve.

5. The method according to claim 4 wherein the predetermined curve is selected from a plurality of curves according to a specified size of the respective transition region.

6. The method according to claim 1 wherein: the transition angular range comprises at least one first angular range adjacent to the glare suppression angular range and at least one second angular range adjacent to the first angular range in the direction of the fully illuminated angular range; and the light intensity of the lighting elements illuminating the first angular range is controlled to between 10 percent and 50 percent of the light intensity of the lighting elements illuminating the fully illuminated angular range, and the light intensity of the lighting elements illuminating the second angular range is controlled to between 50 percent and 90 percent of the light intensity of the lighting elements illuminating the fully illuminated angular range.

7. The method according to claim 1 wherein the lighting elements are assigned to defined beam angle segments, and wherein the light intensity of the lighting elements assigned to a same one of the beam angle segments is controlled as a function of an angular distance of the beam angle segment from the boundary of the glare suppression angular range.

8. The method according to claim 7 wherein the light intensity of the lighting elements that are assigned to the same one of the beam angle segments is controlled as a function of the angular distance of the segment boundary from the boundary of the glare suppression angular range according to a predetermined curve.

9. The method according to claim 1 wherein a size of the at least one transition angular range is adjusted based on an angular velocity of a change in the position or the size of the glare suppression angular range.

10. A lighting device for a vehicle adapted to illuminate a road, comprising: at least one headlamp having a plurality of lighting elements, wherein a light intensity of each lighting element is individually controllable; a sensor configured to detect another user of the road; and a controller configured for: (A) detecting an activated state of the at least one headlamp; (B) detecting a body of the another user which is to be protected from glare; (C) determining a glare suppression angular range based on a determined extent and position of the detected body; (D) determining at least one transition angular range adjacent to the glare suppression angular range; (E) controlling the light intensity of the lighting elements illuminating the glare suppression angular range to below a specified limit; and (F) controlling the light intensity of the lighting elements illuminating the transition angular range according to a distance of a respective beam angle of light generated by individual lighting elements from the glare suppression angular range, wherein the light intensity increases as the distance increases.

11. The lighting device according to claim 10 wherein the lighting elements are comprised of LEDs.

12. The lighting device according to claim 10 wherein the lighting elements are arranged in the form of a matrix.

13. The lighting device according to claim 10 wherein the at least one transition angular range adjacent is between the glare suppression angular range and a fully illuminated angular range.

14. The lighting device according to claim 10 wherein the distance is an angular distance, wherein the light intensity of at least one lighting element which illuminates at least one transition angular range is controlled as a function of the respective angular distance of the respective beam angle of the lighting element from an angular limit of the glare suppression angular range according to a predetermined curve.

15. The lighting device according to claim 14 wherein the predetermined curve is selected from a plurality of curves according to a specified size of the respective transition region.

16. The lighting device according to claim 10 wherein: the transition angular range comprises at least one first angular range adjacent to the glare suppression angular range and at least one second angular range adjacent to the first angular range in the direction of the fully illuminated angular range; and the light intensity of the lighting elements illuminating the first angular range is controlled to between 10 percent and 50 percent of the light intensity of the lighting elements illuminating the fully illuminated angular range, and the light intensity of the lighting elements illuminating the second angular range is controlled to between 50 percent and 90 percent of the light intensity of the lighting elements illuminating the fully illuminated angular range.

17. The lighting device according to claim 10 wherein the lighting elements are assigned to defined beam angle segments, and wherein the light intensity of the lighting elements assigned to a same one of the beam angle segments is controlled as a function of an angular distance of the beam angle segment from the boundary of the glare suppression angular range.

18. The lighting device according to claim 17 wherein the light intensity of the lighting elements that are assigned to the same one of the beam angle segments is controlled as a function of the angular distance of a segment boundary from the boundary of the glare suppression angular range according to a predetermined curve.

19. The lighting device according to claim 10 wherein a size of the at least one transition angular range is adjusted based on an angular velocity of a change in the position or the size of the glare suppression angular range.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a road surface with two motor vehicles, viewed from above.

[0026] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a lighting device for a vehicle in an exploded view.

[0027] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram in the form of a flowchart of a method according to the invention for operating a lighting device for a vehicle.

[0028] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a first variant of a generated illumination of an oncoming vehicle from the perspective of the illuminating vehicle in the direction of travel.

[0029] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a second variant of a generated illumination of an oncoming vehicle from the perspective of the illuminating vehicle in the direction of travel.

[0030] FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram that illustrates the light intensity of a lighting element as a function of the angular distance of the angle segment illuminated by a lighting element for different sizes of the transition angular range.

[0031] FIG. 7 is a schematic drawing of a lighting device according to the invention.

[0032] FIG. 8 is a schematic drawing of a vehicle according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0033] FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of a road surface 2 with two motor vehicles 1 and 3 viewed from above. The first motor vehicle 1 has its main beam switched on. The second motor vehicle 3 is traveling towards the first motor vehicle 1 in an opposing lane. The light beam emitted by the main beam of the first motor vehicle 1 is labeled with the reference numeral 4. The light beam of the main beam normally causes glare to a user of the second motor vehicle 3. The region labeled with reference numeral 5 should therefore be protected from glare. This can be realized in an advantageous way by means of the present invention.

[0034] FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram of a lighting device 10 for a vehicle in an exploded view. The lighting device 10 comprises a printed circuit board 11 with a plurality of LED chips, for example with 84 LED chips, which are each individually mounted and integrated into a control unit. The light emitted by the LEDs 6 is manipulated in a primary optics 12, which can comprise silicone, for example, and directed to a secondary optics 13, which can comprise PMMA lenses, for example. The light emitted by the lighting device 10 can provide the main light beam and is labeled with the reference numeral 4.

[0035] In the following, a method according to the invention is explained in more detail using the flowchart shown in FIG. 3. In a first step 21, an activated state of the at least one headlamp 10 is detected. In a second step 22, a body to be protected is from glare is detected. This can be effected using suitable sensors, such as cameras, in particular mono, stereo, or infrared cameras, and/or ultrasonic sensors and/or radar sensors and/or lidar sensors. The body to be protected from glare can in principle be any object or subject, for example one or more other road users, in particular another vehicle (see vehicle 3 in FIG. 1). Bodies to be protected from glare can be identified by means of a camera on the basis of their lighting devices. As part of the image processing, light sources are evaluated and objects are identified on the basis of their edges, wherein both types of information can be evaluated together.

[0036] In step 23, a glare suppression angular range 5 is determined based on a determined extent of the detected body. The extent can be determined from detected geometric parameters such as the width of the body and/or from the position of one or more of the detected lighting devices of the body. Also in step 23, at least one transition angular range, adjacent to the glare suppression angular range, to a fully illuminated angular range is determined.

[0037] In step 24, the light intensity of the lighting elements, for example the corresponding LEDs, illuminating the glare suppression angular range is controlled to a light intensity below a specified limit For example, the limit may be below 10% of the maximum light intensity. The corresponding lighting elements can also be switched off or deactivated.

[0038] In step 25 (which can be carried out simultaneously, before, or after step 24), the light intensity of the lighting elements illuminating the transition angular range is controlled to a light intensity which depends on the distance, in particular the angular distance, of the beam angle of the individual lighting elements from the glare suppression angular range. The light intensity increases with increasing distance. In the variant shown in FIG. 3, steps 24 and 25 are executed simultaneously. Thereafter, the method branches back to step 21. Alternatively, the method can alternatively branch back to step 22. If the method branches back to step 22, the method is repeated until an input is received to terminate the method. This can be the case, for example, when a headlamp is switched off or a corresponding user input is detected.

[0039] In the following, variant embodiments of steps 24 and 25 are explained in more detail using FIGS. 4 to 6. FIG. 4 shows two example snapshots, shown schematically one above the other, of portions of an illumination beam directed toward an oncoming vehicle 3 as generated by corresponding elements of the lighting device, in a front view. The chronological sequence is indicated by an arrow 7. In the variant shown, the individual lighting elements of the lighting device are divided into segments arranged next to one another in the x-direction 9, for example horizontally. Each segment illuminates a specified angular range 8, hereafter referred to as a beam angle segment or angle segment. The angle segments 8 can be of equal size, but they can also have different sizes. Likewise, angular ranges of individual segments can overlap, which for the sake of simplicity is not shown here.

[0040] In step 23 of the method described in FIG. 3, based on a determined extent of the vehicle 3 detected in this example, a glare suppression angular range is determined which is labeled in FIG. 4 with the reference numeral 14. Each respective distance 15, in particular the respective angular distance, of a boundary of the respective illumination angle of the individual angle segments 8 is then determined. In the variant shown at the top of FIG. 4, the boundary measured from the glare suppression angular range 14 of a first angle segment 8 shown to the right of the motor vehicle 3 has an angular distance of 0.6 degrees, that of a second angle segment has an angular distance of 1.6 degrees and that of a third angle segment has an angular distance of 2.6 degrees. The boundary measured from the glare suppression angular range 14 of a first angle segment 8 shown to the left of the motor vehicle 3 has an angular distance of 0.5 degrees, that of a second angle segment has an angular distance of 1.5 degrees and that of a third angle segment has an angular distance of 2.5 degrees. Depending on each respective angular distance, the light intensity of the individual lighting elements of the respective segments is controlled. In the row 16 shown below the angle segments 8, a light intensity emitted by each segment is indicated as a percentage of the full, unmodified intensity. For visualization purposes, the angle segments 8 which generate a fully illuminated (i.e., non-dimmed) angular range are indicated by reference numeral 17, and angle segments 8 which generate a glare suppression (i.e., deactivated or 0% intensity) angular range are indicated by reference numeral 18. Between the glare suppression angular range 18 and the fully illuminated angular range 17, a transition (i.e., dimmed) angular range 19 is formed, the size of which can be individually defined and dynamically adjusted. Lighting elements that illuminate the transition angular range 19 show an increasing light intensity with increasing angular distance x from the glare suppression angular range 18. In the variant shown in FIG. 4, a first transition angular sub-range 31 and a second transition angular sub-range 32 are provided for this range, each of which is formed by a respective angle segment 8. The first transition angular sub-range 31 in each case is adjacent to the glare suppression angular range 18 or an angle segment 8 that encompasses it. The second transition angular range 32 is adjacent to the first transition angular sub-range 31 in the direction approaching the fully illuminated angular range 17. The lighting elements that illuminate the second transition angular sub-range 32 each have a higher light intensity than the lighting elements that illuminate the first transition angular sub-range 31.

[0041] In the variant shown in FIG. 5, only one transition angular range 19 is present, which in the variant shown to the left of the motor vehicle 3 is arranged between the glare suppression angular range 14 and the fully illuminated angular range 17. The transition angular range 19 comprises three angle segments 8 with increasing light intensity in the direction of the fully illuminated angular range 17.

[0042] FIG. 6 shows a schematic diagram showing the light intensity J in percent of a lighting element or of the lighting elements of a segment as a function of the angular distance x in degrees of the angle segment 8 illuminated by the lighting element or the lighting elements for different sizes of the transition angular range. The curve 33 is plotted for a size of a transition angular range of 1 degree. The curve 34 is plotted for a size of a transition angular range of 2 degrees. The curve 35 is plotted for a size of a transition angular range 19 of 3 degrees. Depending on the chosen size of the transition angular range 19, which can be dynamically adjusted, the light intensity J of the individual lighting elements can be controlled as a function of the distance of is the angular range illuminated by them from the glare suppression angular range 14.

[0043] FIG. 7 shows a schematic drawing of a lighting device 10 according to the invention for a vehicle 1. The lighting device 10 comprises a plurality of lighting elements 36, for example LEDs, and a control device 37 for controlling the light intensity emitted by each lighting element. The control device 37 is designed to carry out a method according to the invention, for example a method according to the invention described by means of FIGS. 3 to 6.

[0044] FIG. 8 shows a schematic drawing of a vehicle 1 according to the invention, for example a motor vehicle according to the invention. The vehicle 1 according to the invention comprises a previously described lighting device 10 according to the invention.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

[0045] 1 motor vehicle
2 road surface
3 motor vehicle
4 emitted light
5 glare suppression region
6 emitted light
7 chronological sequence
8 angle segment
9 x-direction
10 lighting device
11 printed circuit board with LEDs
12 primary optics
13 secondary optics
14 glare suppression angular range
15 angular distance
16 emitted light intensity
17 fully illuminated angular range
18 glare suppression angular range
19 transition angular range
21 headlamp switched on
22 body to be protected from glare
23 Determine glare suppression angular range based on a determined extent of the detected body and determine transition angular range
24 Control the light intensity of the lighting elements illuminating the glare suppression angular range to a light intensity below a specified limit
25 Light intensity of the lighting elements illuminating the transition angular range controlled to a light intensity which depends on the distance from the beam angle of the individual lighting elements to the glare suppression angular range
31 first transition angular range
32 second transition angular range
33 curve
34 curve
35 curve
36 plurality of lighting elements
37 control device