# US 11,440,474 B2 · Vehicle and system for detecting trailer connection > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 11,440,474 B2 - Document ID: US11440474B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 16/404,932 - Filed: 2019-05-07 - Published: 2020-11-12 - Granted: 2022-09-13 - Earliest claimed: 2019-05-07 - Assignees: Ford Global Technologies, LLC - Applicants: Ford Global Technologies, LLC - Inventors: Luke Niewiadomski; Roger Arnold Trombley; Lihui Chen - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11440474B2 ## CPC - B60R 1/003: {for viewing trailer hitches} - B60D 1/06: Ball-and-socket hitches - B60D 1/62: involving supply lines, electric circuits or the like - B60Q 9/00: Arrangement or adaptation of signal devices not provided for in one of main groups B60Q1/00 - B60Q7/00 {, e.g. haptic signalling} - B60R 1/26: to the rear of the vehicle - G06F 18/22: Matching criteria, e.g. proximity measures - G06T 7/70: Determining position or orientation of objects or cameras (camera calibration G06T7/80) - G06V 10/44: Local feature extraction by analysis of parts of the pattern, e.g. by detecting edges, contours, loops, corners, strokes or intersections; Connectivity analysis, e.g. of connected components - G06V 10/751: {Comparing pixel values or logical combinations thereof, or feature values having positional relevance, e.g. template matching} - G06V 20/56: exterior to a vehicle by using sensors mounted on the vehicle - G06V 20/59: inside of a vehicle, e.g. relating to seat occupancy, driver state or inner lighting conditions - G06V 40/103: {Static body considered as a whole, e.g. static pedestrian or occupant recognition} - G07C 5/0825: {using optical means} - B60D 1/28: for preventing unwanted disengagement, e.g. safety appliances - B60R 11/04: Mounting of cameras operative during drive; Arrangement of controls thereof relative to the vehicle - B60R 2300/30: characterised by the type of image processing - B60R 2300/808: for facilitating docking to a trailer - G06T 2207/30252: Vehicle exterior; Vicinity of vehicle - B60R: VEHICLES, VEHICLE FITTINGS, OR VEHICLE PARTS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR - B60D: VEHICLE CONNECTIONS - B60Q: ARRANGEMENT OF SIGNALLING OR LIGHTING DEVICES, THE MOUNTING OR SUPPORTING THEREOF OR CIRCUITS THEREFOR, FOR VEHICLES IN GENERAL - G06F: ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING (computer systems based on specific computational models G06N) - G06T: IMAGE DATA PROCESSING OR GENERATION, IN GENERAL - G06V: IMAGE OR VIDEO RECOGNITION OR UNDERSTANDING - G07C: TIME OR ATTENDANCE REGISTERS; REGISTERING OR INDICATING THE WORKING OF MACHINES; GENERATING RANDOM NUMBERS; VOTING OR LOTTERY APPARATUS; ARRANGEMENTS, SYSTEMS OR APPARATUS FOR CHECKING NOT PROVIDED FOR ELSEWHERE ## Abstract A vehicle is provided that includes a trailer hitch, a camera oriented to capture images of the trailer hitch, and a controller processing the captured images, detecting a trailer safety chain associated with a trailer, determining a connection state of the trailer safety chain to the vehicle, and generating an output indicative of the determined connection state of the trailer safety chain to the vehicle. The vehicle may determine a change in a scene of the captured image following placement of a trailer coupler onto a vehicle hitch and determine a trailer connection state based on the change in scene. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A vehicle comprising: a trailer hitch; a camera oriented to capture images of the trailer hitch; a hitch assist system for assisting with connecting a trailer to the trailer hitch, wherein the hitch assist system places the vehicle in a position such that the trailer hitch is aligned to be coupled to the trailer coupler; and a controller processing the captured images, detecting a trailer safety chain associated with a trailer, determining a connection state of the trailer safety chain to the vehicle, and generating an output indicative of the determined connection state of the trailer safety chain to the vehicle, wherein the step of detecting the trailer safety chain comprises comparing the captured images to known safety chain images and recognizing a contour pattern of a chain by recognizing an outline of interconnected linkages of the chain in the image, and wherein the step of determining the connection of the trailer safety chain to the vehicle comprises determining a continuous safety chain pattern between the vehicle and the trailer. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The vehicle of claim 1 further comprising a display for displaying the output as a warning to a driver of the vehicle. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the controller further detects the vehicle is in a trailer mode before generating the output. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the controller compares the captured images to known images of safety chains stored in memory. ### Claim 5 A hitch assist system for assisting with connecting a trailer to a trailer hitch and detecting a trailer safety chain connection state between a trailer and a vehicle, the system comprising: a camera oriented to capture images of the vehicle trailer hitch coupled to the trailer; and a controller processing the captured images, controlling placement of the vehicle in a position such that the trailer hitch is aligned to be coupled to the trailer coupler detecting a trailer safety chain connected to a trailer, determining a connection state of the trailer safety chain to the vehicle, and generating an output indicative of the determined connection state of the trailer safety chain to the vehicle, wherein the step of detecting the trailer safety chain comprises comparing the captured images to known safety chain images and recognizing a contour pattern of a chain by recognizing an outline of interconnected linkages of the chain in the image, and wherein the step of determining the connection state of the trailer safety chain to the vehicle comprises determining a continuous safety chain pattern between the vehicle and the trailer. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The system of claim 5 further comprising a display for displaying the output as a warning to a driver of the vehicle. ### Claim 7 (depends on 5) The system of claim 5, wherein the controller further detects the vehicle is in a trailer mode before generating the output. ### Claim 8 (depends on 5) The system of claim 5, wherein the controller compares the captured images to known images of safety chains stored in memory. ### Claim 9 A vehicle comprising: a trailer hitch; a camera oriented to capture images of the trailer hitch; a hitch assist system for assisting with connecting a trailer to the trailer hitch, wherein the hitch assist system places the vehicle in a position such that the trailer hitch is aligned to be coupled to the trailer coupler; and a controller processing the captured images, determining a change in a scene of the captured images following placement of a trailer coupler onto a vehicle hitch, determining a trailer connection state based on the change in the scene, and generating an output indicative of the determined trailer connection state, wherein the change in scene is determined based on detecting a change in position of a trailer feature, wherein the step of determining the change in a scene comprises comparing the captured images to known images of trailer features including safety chain images and recognizing a contour pattern of a safety chain by recognizing an outline of interconnected linkages of the chain in the image. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The vehicle of claim 9, wherein the hitch assist system includes an active suspension for adjusting a height of the trailer hitch relative to the trailer coupler. ### Claim 11 (depends on 9) The vehicle of claim 9, wherein the trailer feature comprises one or more of a trailer coupler, a trailer jack assembly and the safety chain.