阅读说明：本技术 智能遮阳板系统及相应的车辆、方法、设备和介质 (Intelligent sun visor system, and corresponding vehicle, method, apparatus, and medium ) 是由 宋国林 沈刚 于 2021-08-17 设计创作，主要内容包括：本发明提出用于车辆的智能遮阳板系统、包括其的车辆以及相应的方法、计算机设备和计算机可读存储介质。该系统包括：包括遮阳板和附接于其上的显示屏的遮阳板装置,所述遮阳板适于以能够在收回位置和展开位置之间移动的方式被安装在所述车辆上,使得所述遮阳板在处于展开位置时能够遮挡来自所述车辆的至少一侧的光线；图像获取和提供装置,适于在所述遮阳板处于展开位置时获取所述车辆的一侧或多侧的环境的图像并将获取的图像提供给所述显示屏供在所述显示屏上显示,所述一侧或多侧包括所述至少一侧。使用本发明的方案,在使用遮阳板遮挡阳光的同时,能避免或减轻因使用遮阳板而造成的视野盲区的问题,从而提升驾车安全性以及驾驶员的驾驶体验。(The invention provides a smart visor system for a vehicle, a vehicle comprising the same, and a corresponding method, computer device and computer-readable storage medium. The system comprises: a visor device comprising a visor and a display screen attached thereto, the visor being adapted to be mounted on the vehicle in a manner movable between a retracted position and a deployed position such that the visor, when in the deployed position, is capable of blocking light from at least one side of the vehicle; image capture and provision means adapted to capture images of the environment of one or more sides of the vehicle, including the at least one side, when the visor is in the deployed position and to provide the captured images to the display screen for display thereon. By using the scheme of the invention, the problem of a visual field blind area caused by using the sun shield can be avoided or reduced while the sun shield is used for shielding sunlight, so that the driving safety and the driving experience of a driver are improved.)

1. A smart visor system for a vehicle comprising:

a visor device comprising a visor and a display screen attached to the visor, the visor being adapted to be mounted on the vehicle in a manner movable between a retracted position and an extended position such that the visor, when in the extended position, is capable of blocking light from at least one side of the vehicle;

image capture and provision means adapted to capture images of the environment of one or more sides of the vehicle when the visor is in the deployed position and to provide the captured images to the display screen for display on the display screen, wherein the one or more sides include the at least one side.

2. The smart visor system of claim 1 wherein said image acquisition and providing means comprises:

an image capture device adapted to capture images of the environment of the one or more sides of the vehicle when the visor is in the deployed position;

a processing device adapted to receive the captured image, process the image to obtain a processed image adapted for display on the display screen, and provide the processed image to the display screen for display on the display screen.

3. The smart visor system of claim 2 wherein said processing means comprises:

first processing means external to said sun visor device adapted to receive said captured image, process said image to obtain a processed image adapted to be displayed on said display screen; and

second processing means integrated in the sun visor device adapted to receive the processed image and to provide the processed image to the display screen for display on the display screen,

wherein the processed image is provided by the first processing device to the second processing device via WiFi.

4. The smart visor system of claim 3 wherein said first processing device is included in a vehicle control unit of said vehicle.

5. The smart visor system of any one of claims 2-4 wherein said image capture device comprises a front facing camera mounted on the exterior of said vehicle above a front windshield of said vehicle proximate to an interior rear view mirror of said vehicle.

6. A vehicle comprising a smart visor system according to any of the claims 1-5.

7. A method for a vehicle having a visor device mounted thereto including a visor and a display screen attached thereto, the visor adapted to be mounted on the vehicle in a manner movable between a retracted position and an extended position such that the visor, when in the extended position, is capable of blocking light from at least one side of the vehicle, the method comprising:

an image acquisition step: acquiring an image of an environment of one or more sides of the vehicle when the visor is in the deployed position, wherein the one or more sides include the at least one side; and

the providing step: providing the acquired image to the display screen for display on the display screen.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein,

the image acquisition step includes: capturing an image of an environment of the one or more sides of the vehicle with an image capture device when the visor is in the deployed position,

the providing step includes: the method includes receiving a captured image, processing the image to obtain a processed image suitable for display on the display screen, and providing the processed image to the display screen for display on the display screen.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the providing step comprises:

receiving the captured image by first processing means external to the visor device, processing the image to obtain a processed image suitable for display on the display screen; and

receiving the processed image by a second processing means integrated in the sun visor device and providing the processed image to the display screen for display on the display screen,

wherein the processed image is provided by the first processing device to the second processing device via WiFi.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the first processing device is included in a vehicle control unit of the vehicle.

11. The method of any of claims 8-10, wherein the image capture device comprises a front facing camera mounted on an exterior of the vehicle above a front windshield of the vehicle proximate an interior rearview mirror of the vehicle.

12. A computer device comprising a memory and a processor, the memory having stored thereon computer instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the method of any of claims 7-11 to be performed.

13. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having stored thereon computer instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the method according to any one of claims 7-11 to be performed.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to the field of vehicle technology, and more particularly, to a smart visor system for a vehicle, a vehicle including the same, and a corresponding method, computer device, and computer-readable storage medium.

Background

During driving, drivers often need to pull down the sun visor to block strong sunlight, especially in hot summer. However, in the case of using the sun visor to block sunlight, there is a problem in that there is a blind area of view in an area blocked by the sun visor for a driver due to blocking by the sun visor, and traffic lights, road signboards, and cargo vehicles such as a large truck loaded with high cargo are all in this area, and thus there is a safety risk.

Accordingly, a solution is needed to address the potential safety risks associated with using a visor.

Disclosure of Invention

It is an object of the present invention to provide a solution that solves or at least alleviates the above mentioned problems.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a smart visor system for a vehicle, comprising:

a visor device comprising a visor and a display screen attached to the visor, the visor being adapted to be mounted on the vehicle in a manner movable between a retracted position and an extended position such that the visor, when in the extended position, is capable of blocking light from at least one side of the vehicle;

image capture and provision means adapted to capture images of the environment of one or more sides of the vehicle when the visor is in the deployed position and to provide the captured images to the display screen for display on the display screen, wherein the one or more sides include the at least one side.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vehicle comprising the smart visor system described above.

According to a third aspect of the present invention there is provided a method for a vehicle fitted with a visor device comprising a visor and a display attached to the visor, the visor adapted to be mounted on the vehicle in a manner movable between a retracted position and an extended position such that the visor is able to obstruct light from at least one side of the vehicle when in the extended position, the method comprising:

an image acquisition step: acquiring an image of an environment of one or more sides of the vehicle when the visor is in the deployed position, wherein the one or more sides include the at least one side; and

the providing step: providing the acquired image to the display screen for display on the display screen.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer device comprising a memory and a processor, the memory having stored thereon computer instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the method described above to be performed.

According to a fifth aspect of the invention, there is provided a non-transitory computer readable storage medium having stored thereon computer instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the method described above to be performed.

According to the scheme of the invention, the display screen is arranged on the sun visor, and when the sun visor is in the unfolded position to shield light outside the vehicle, an image of the environment in the area shielded by the sun visor for a vehicle driver is displayed on the display screen, so that the problem of a view blind area caused by using the sun visor can be avoided or alleviated while the sunlight is shielded. By using the method and the device, the driving safety and the driving experience of a driver can be improved.

Drawings

Non-limiting and non-exhaustive embodiments of the present invention are described by way of example with reference to the following drawings, in which:

fig. 1a is a plan view schematically showing a sun visor device for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 1b is a plan view schematically showing a sun visor device for a vehicle according to another embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 2 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a smart visor system for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 3 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a smart visor system for a vehicle according to another embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 4 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a smart visor system for a vehicle according to another embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 5 is a flow chart schematically illustrating a method for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

In order to make the above and other features and advantages of the present invention more apparent, the present invention is further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It is understood that the specific embodiments described herein are for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to be limiting.

In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art that the specific details need not be employed to practice the present invention. In other instances, well-known steps or operations are not described in detail to avoid obscuring the invention. Moreover, the dimensions and proportions of the various elements in the figures are also only schematic and do not correspond to actual products.

The present invention proposes a sun visor device for a vehicle comprising a display screen, as exemplified below with reference to fig. 1a and 1 b.

As shown in fig. 1a, a sun visor device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a sun visor 102 and a display screen 104, such as a touch screen, attached thereto. The visor 102 is adapted to be movably mounted on a vehicle and movable between a retracted position and an extended position when mounted on the vehicle such that the visor 102 is capable of blocking light, such as sunlight, from at least one side of the vehicle when in the extended position. The visor 102 may be mounted within the vehicle interior in a variety of possible ways such that the visor 102 is movable between the retracted position and the extended position in one or more possible ways, such as by rotation, translation, etc. The particular manner and means of mounting the sun visor may be as known in the art and will not be described in detail herein.

In one embodiment, the visor 102 may be mounted for rotation to move between a retracted position and a deployed position. For example, the sun visor 102 may be mounted in an area of a vehicle ceiling forward on a front seat of the vehicle in which a driver seat is located, near an upper edge of a front windshield. In particular, the visor 102 may be located over the middle of the front seat of the vehicle. In the retracted position, the sun visor 102 may be stacked on the roof of the vehicle, and by turning downward from the retracted position, the sun visor 102 may be turned from the retracted position to be deployed. The sun visor can rotate at different angles from the retracted position to be in the unfolded positions at different angles so as to shield light rays at different heights. Depending on the case, the sun visor 102 itself may constitute the base of the sun visor device, or the sun visor 102 may be provided on a separate base (not shown). In the latter case, the sun visor may be arranged to be movable relative to the base such that the sun visor overlies the base when the sun visor is in the retracted position, the sun visor moving relative to the base when the sun visor is moved towards its extended position while the base and other components thereon, if any, other than the sun visor and the display screen remain stationary.

The display screen 104 may be attached to the visor 102 in a variety of possible ways. Specifically, display screen 104 is fixedly attached to sun visor 102 on its back side or movably attached relative to sun visor 102 with the front, i.e., display side, of display screen 104 facing away from sun visor 102 such that the front of display screen 104 faces the vehicle operator when sun visor 102 is in the deployed position.

The sun visor device 100 'shown in fig. 1b is identical to the sun visor device 100 of fig. 1a, except that the sun visor device 100' comprises a battery and a switch, in addition to the sun visor 102 'and the display screen 104' attached thereto, which may correspond to the sun visor 102 and the display screen 104, respectively.

The switch may be configured to turn the display screen 104' on and off and may be any suitable type of switch, such as a capacitive touch key. The switch may be located near an edge of the display screen, such as in a bezel of the display screen. In fig. 1b, the switch is shown in a position near the lower right corner of the display screen. The switch may be communicatively coupled by hard wiring with a control circuit associated with the display screen integrated inside the sun visor device, such as a control unit included in a second processing device to be described later, such as a central processor, so that the control circuit causes the display screen in the inactive state to be turned on or causes the display screen in the active state to be turned off in response to detection of a pressing operation of the switch. In addition, provision may be made for the touchscreen to be automatically turned on or off by circuitry associated therewith in response to an activation triggering event or a deactivation triggering event. The enabling trigger event may include, for example but not limited to: the deactivation triggering event, which the sun visor of the sun visor device moves from the retracted position to the deployed or in the deployed position, may include, for example and without limitation: the sun visor of the sun visor device is in the retracted position.

The battery may be used to power the display screen 104' and control circuitry associated with the display screen. The battery may be removable. The battery may be located on the same substrate as the visor 102', but at a different location on the substrate than the visor. For example, the battery may be located in a region near one side of the base plate (the upper side in fig. 1 b), while the visor 102' is located in a region near the opposite side of the base plate (the lower side in fig. 1 b). As desired, the visor 102' may be arranged to be movable relative to the base such that the visor overlies the base when the visor is in the retracted position, and moves relative to the base while the base and its batteries remain stationary when the visor is moved toward its extended position. In one possible embodiment, the battery is a rechargeable battery, and the visor device is correspondingly configured with a circuit port, such as a type C interface, for the battery. When charging is required, the rechargeable battery can be charged through the type C interface around the cigarette lighter under the vehicle dashboard. Alternatively, provision may be made to display the charge information of the rechargeable battery on the display screen 104', such as in the upper right region of the display screen, and provision may be made such that when the charge is less than a certain threshold (e.g., 10%), the charge information flag turns red and a charge reminder or other possible form of charge reminder information pops up at intervals, such as one minute; such a setting may be implemented by circuitry associated with the display screen and the battery. In further embodiments, solar cells may be used, which may be advantageous, for example, to collect and store energy from sunlight while the sun visor is used to shade the sun.

According to circumstances, the sun visor of the sun visor device of the present invention may be mounted so as to be adapted to be turned in one or more directions, such as up-and-down and/or side-to-side, depending on the configuration and/or mounting manner of the sun visor. Depending on the angle and direction in which the sun visor can be rotated, the sun visor may shade a portion of the light in front of, to the left of, and/or to the right of the vehicle. The sun visor of the sun visor device of the present invention may be used in particular for a driver of a vehicle for blocking at least part of the light from the front side of the vehicle.

Alternatively, the visor device of the present invention may comprise a built-in camera arranged inside the vehicle or be adapted to be communicatively coupled with such a built-in camera. For example, the display screen of the sun visor device of the present invention may include a camera provided near the edge thereof, such as on the bezel, as a built-in camera. Such an internal camera may be configured to capture image information of the vehicle driver, which may be provided to the display screen of the sun visor device for presentation by the display screen. As such, the sun visor device of the present invention can be used as a cosmetic mirror. It may be set, for example, by circuitry associated with the display screen, such that the vanity mirror function may be enabled only when the vehicle speed is less than a speed threshold, such as 5km/h, and disabled otherwise, such as during high speed vehicle travel.

The sun visor device of the present invention may optionally further include any other possible components according to circumstances.

Fig. 2 schematically illustrates a smart visor system 20 for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention. The smart visor system 20 generally includes an image acquisition and providing device 210 and a visor device 200. The visor device 200 includes a visor (not shown) and a display screen 204. The sun visor device 200 may be any sun visor device according to the present invention, such as the sun visor device 100 of fig. 1a or the sun visor device 100' of fig. 1 b. The construction, mounting and operation of the sun visor device 200 can be referred to above and will not be described in detail here. The image capture and provision device 210 may be configured and adapted to capture images of the environment of one or more sides of the vehicle when the visors (not shown) of the visor device 200 are in the deployed position and provide the captured images to the display screen 204 for display on the display screen 204. Here, the one or more sides include at least one vehicle side from which the sun visor of the sun visor device 200 can block light when in the deployed position. For example, in one embodiment, the visor, when in the deployed position, is capable of blocking light from the front side of the vehicle, in which case the image capture and provision device 210 may be configured and adapted to capture images of the environment of the front side of the vehicle, and optionally of the environment of other sides of the vehicle, such as the left and/or right side.

Fig. 3 schematically illustrates a smart visor system 30 for a vehicle according to another embodiment of the present invention. Smart visor system 30 comprises an image capture device 310, a processing device 320 and a visor device 300. The sun visor device 300 includes a sun visor (not shown) and a display screen 304. The sun visor device 300 may be any sun visor device according to the present invention, such as the sun visor device 100 of fig. 1a or the sun visor device 100' of fig. 1 b. The construction, mounting and operation of the sun visor device 300 can be referred to above and will not be described in detail here. Image capture device 310 may be configured to be adapted to capture images of the environment of one or more sides of the vehicle when the visor (not shown) of visor device 300 is in the deployed position. The processing device 320 is configured and adapted to receive images captured by the image acquisition device 310, process the images to obtain processed images adapted for display on the display screen 304, and provide the processed images to the display screen 304 for display on the display screen 304.

Image capture device 310 may include one or more cameras (not shown). In the latter case, the multiple cameras may be mounted at different locations of the vehicle to capture images of the environment on different sides of the vehicle. The specific arrangement position of the camera may be based on the available arrangement space of the vehicle in which it is located. In one embodiment, image capture device 310 includes a front facing camera mounted on the exterior of the vehicle above the front windshield of the vehicle in proximity to the interior rearview mirror of the vehicle. In the case of employing a front camera, the sun visor device with a display screen of the present invention can be advantageously used as a drive recorder.

Optionally, image information captured by available cameras (e.g., front-facing cameras and/or built-in cameras) may be communicated to a smart cabin host of the vehicle, such as a video entertainment host, for storage or other purposes, for example, to further expand the application scenarios of the present invention via the video entertainment host. For example, the audiovisual entertainment host may share, publish, etc. photos and videos from the smart visor system in a circle of friends and/or through another channel via the APP carried thereby.

Either or each of the front camera and the built-in camera may be configured to be manually and/or automatically rotatable. For example, in one embodiment, in response to an input by the driver via the display screen indicating self-timer or enabling the cosmetic mirror function, the built-in camera may be controlled by circuitry associated with the display screen to rotate to a position suitable for capturing image information of the driver.

Fig. 4 schematically illustrates a smart visor system 40 for a vehicle according to another embodiment of the present invention. The smart visor system 40 comprises an image capturing device 410, a first processing device 420 and a visor device 400. The visor device 400 includes a visor (not shown) and a display screen 404. The sun visor device 400 may be any sun visor device according to the present invention, such as the sun visor device 100 of fig. 1a or the sun visor device 100' of fig. 1 b. The construction, mounting and operation of the sun visor device 400 can be referred to above and will not be described in detail. In addition, the sun visor device 400 further comprises a second processing device 406. Similar to the image capture device 310, the image capture device 410 may be configured to be adapted to capture images of the environment of one or more sides of the vehicle when the visor (not shown) of the visor device 400 is in the deployed position. The first processing means 420 is external to the sun visor device 400 and is adapted to receive the images captured by the image capturing means 410, process said images to obtain processed images suitable for display on the display screen 404. The second processing means 406 is integrated in the sun visor device 400 and is configured and adapted to receive the processed image and provide the processed image to the display screen 404 for display on the display screen 404.

Specifically, the first processing device 420 includes an LVDS signal communication unit 4202 having an LVDS interface, a first control unit 4204, and a first WiFi wireless communication unit 4206 having a WiFi interface. As the image capturing device 410, such as a camera, captures an image of an environment outside the vehicle in real time, the first control unit 4204 receives an image signal corresponding to the captured image through a Low-Voltage Differential Signaling (LVDS) via the LVDS signal communication unit 4202 and processes it to obtain a processed image signal, and then supplies the processed image signal to the first WiFi wireless communication unit 4206. The processing of the image signal corresponding to the captured image by the first control unit 4204 may include, for example and without limitation: correcting distortion; the image size is cut out to obtain an image having a view field size corresponding to a display screen of a sun visor device mounted on a vehicle. The processed image signal processed by the first control unit 4204 may be transmitted from the first control unit 4204 to the first WiFi wireless communication unit 4206 in the form of a MIPI image signal according to a Mobile Industry Processor Interface (MIPI) protocol. The first processing device 420 may be included in a vehicle control unit of a vehicle. Alternatively, the first processing device 420 may be external to the vehicle controller of the vehicle and be configured specifically for use with the visor device 400. For example, the first processing device 420 can be implemented as a dedicated integrated circuit Chip, such as in the form of a System-on-Chip or System-on-Chip (SoC).

The second processing device 406 includes a second WiFi wireless communication unit 4062 having a WiFi interface and a second control unit 4064. The first WiFi wireless communication unit 4206, after receiving the processed image signal in the form of the MIPI image signal, may convert it into a corresponding WiFi signal and then transmit it to the second WiFi wireless communication unit 4062 through WiFi. The second WiFi wireless communication unit 4062 inverts the processed image signal into an MIPI image signal according to the MIPI protocol after receiving the WiFi signal converted from the first WiFi wireless communication unit 4206. Then, the inverted MIPI image signal may be provided to the second control unit 4064 and synchronously transmitted to the display screen 404 for display on the display screen 404 under the control of the second control unit 4064. The transmission of the MIPI image signal from the second control unit 4064 to the Display screen 404 may be performed via a Flat Panel Display Link (FPD-Link). The second processing means 406 may be implemented as a dedicated integrated circuit chip, e.g. in the form of a SoC, included in the sun visor device 400.

The transmission of signals between the image acquisition device 410 and the first processing device 420, between the first processing device 420 and the second processing device 406, between the second processing device 406 and the display screen 404, and within the first processing device 420 and within the second processing device 406 may occur substantially in real time and/or with an acceptable time delay.

The smart visor system of the present invention may also optionally include a light sensor. For example, the light sensor may be included in a sun visor device. When the display screen of the sun visor device is activated to display video images, the brightness of the display screen itself may be automatically adjusted by a control circuit integrated inside the sun visor device and associated with the display screen according to the intensity of the light in the vehicle sensed by the light sensor. Alternatively or additionally, the display screen may be configured such that the brightness of the display screen may be manually adjusted by the driver to personal preferences.

FIG. 5 schematically illustrates a method 500 for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the invention. As shown in fig. 5, method 500 includes step 501 and step 502. The method 500 may be used with a vehicle having the visor device of the present invention installed.

The method 500 begins at step 501, the image acquisition step. Step 501 may include: an image of the environment of one or more sides of a vehicle is acquired when a visor of a visor device mounted on the vehicle is in an extended position. In one embodiment, in step 501, an image of the environment of the one or more sides of a vehicle is captured while the visors of a visor device mounted to the vehicle are in the deployed position, which may be done, for example, by an image capture device. As mentioned above, the one or more sides comprise at least the side of the vehicle from which the sun visor of the sun visor device is able to block light when in the deployed position.

Step 502, which may be referred to as a processing step, may include: the image acquired or captured at step 501 is provided to the display screen of the sun visor device for display thereon.

In one embodiment, step 502 includes step 5021 and step 5022. At step 5021, the image acquired or captured at step 501 is received, processed to obtain a processed image suitable for display on the display screen. At step 5022, the processed image is provided to a display screen of a visor device for display on the display screen.

In one embodiment, step 5021 is performed by a first processing device, such as the first processing device 420, external to the sun visor device mounted on the vehicle, and step 5022 is performed by a second processing device, such as the second processing device 406, integrated into the sun visor device 400. At this point, the processed image may be provided by the first processing device to the second processing device wirelessly, for example via WiFi. Such wireless communication via, for example, WiFi is advantageous, for example, to avoid the visor device being externally connected to a physical cable for wired communication, thereby reducing failures due to wear of the physical cable and avoiding unsightly problems associated with the physical cable.

It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that the schematic diagrams shown in fig. 1 a-4 are merely illustrative of some of the structures associated with the aspects of the present invention and do not constitute limitations of a computer device, processor or computer program embodying aspects of the present invention. A particular computer device, processor or computer program may include more or fewer components or modules than shown in the figures, or may combine or split certain components or modules, or may have a different arrangement of components or modules.

It will be understood that the specific features, operations and details described herein with respect to the apparatus and systems of the present invention, as previously described, may also be similarly applied to the methods of the present invention, or vice versa. In addition, each step of the method of the present invention may be performed by a respective component or unit of the device or system of the present invention.

It should be understood that the various modules/units of the apparatus or system of the present invention may be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware, or a combination thereof. The modules/units may be embedded in the processor of the computer device in the form of hardware or firmware or independent from the processor, or may be stored in the memory of the computer device in the form of software for being called by the processor to execute the operations of the modules/units. Each of the modules/units may be implemented as a separate component or module, or two or more modules/units may be implemented as a single component or module.

In one embodiment, a computer device is provided comprising a memory and a processor, the memory having stored thereon computer instructions executable by the processor, the computer instructions, when executed by the processor, instruct the processor to perform the steps of the method for a vehicle of the present invention. The computer device may broadly be a server, a terminal, or any other electronic device having the necessary computing and/or processing capabilities. In one embodiment, the computer device may include a processor, memory, a network interface, a communication interface, etc., connected by a system bus. The processor of the computer device may be used to provide the necessary computing, processing and/or control capabilities. The memory of the computer device may include non-volatile storage media and internal memory. An operating system, a computer program, and the like may be stored in or on the non-volatile storage medium. The internal memory may provide an environment for the operating system and the computer programs in the non-volatile storage medium to run. The network interface and the communication interface of the computer device may be used to connect and communicate with an external device through a network. The computer program, when executed by a processor, performs the steps of the method for a vehicle of the present invention.

The invention may be implemented as a computer-readable storage medium, on which a computer program is stored which, when being executed by a processor, causes the steps of the inventive method for a vehicle to be carried out. In one embodiment, the computer program is distributed across a plurality of computer devices or processors coupled by a network such that the computer program is stored, accessed, and executed by one or more computer devices or processors in a distributed fashion. A single method step/operation, or two or more method steps/operations, may be performed by a single computer device or processor or by two or more computer devices or processors. One or more method steps/operations may be performed by one or more computer devices or processors, and one or more other method steps/operations may be performed by one or more other computer devices or processors. One or more computer devices or processors may perform a single method step/operation, or perform two or more method steps/operations.

It will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that all or part of the steps of the method for a vehicle of the present invention may be directed to relevant hardware such as a computer device or a processor, which may be stored in a non-transitory computer readable storage medium, and when executed, cause the steps of the method for a vehicle of the present invention to be performed. Any reference herein to memory, storage, databases, or other media may include non-volatile and/or volatile memory, as appropriate. Examples of non-volatile memory include read-only memory (ROM), programmable ROM (prom), electrically programmable ROM (eprom), electrically erasable programmable ROM (eeprom), flash memory, magnetic tape, floppy disk, magneto-optical data storage device, hard disk, solid state disk, and the like. Examples of volatile memory include Random Access Memory (RAM), external cache memory, and the like.

In the description, whenever an embodiment, or the like, is referred to, it is intended that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. The appearances of such phrases in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Further, when a particular feature, structure, or characteristic is described in connection with any embodiment, it is submitted that it is within the purview of one skilled in the art to effect such feature, structure, or characteristic in connection with other ones of the embodiments.

The respective technical features described above may be arbitrarily combined. Although not all possible combinations of features are described, any combination of features should be considered to be covered by the present specification as long as there is no contradiction between such combinations.

While the present invention has been described in connection with the embodiments, it is to be understood by those skilled in the art that the foregoing description and drawings are merely illustrative and not restrictive of the broad invention, and that this invention not be limited to the disclosed embodiments. Various modifications and variations are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention.