Voice activated lane change with driver monitoring system validatation

A system comprising:

• one or more microphones of a vehicle that are configured to obtain a voice input from a user of the vehicle with an initial voice request for the vehicle to make a lane change maneuver;
• one or more additional sensors of the vehicle, the one or more additional sensors configured to obtain additional sensor data pertaining to the user, the one or more additional sensors including one or more cameras configured to provide camera images as to the user of the vehicle subsequent to the obtaining of the initial voice request from the voice input and as part of a redundant visual confirmation of the initial voice request;
• and
• a processor that is coupled to the one or more microphones and that is configured to at least facilitate, subsequent to the obtaining of the initial voice request, and as part of the redundant visual confirmation of the initial voice request:
• determining a direction in which the user is looking, based on the camera images;
• providing a redundant visual confirmation of the initial voice request using the additional sensor data based on whether the direction in which the user is looking corresponds to a direction of the lane change maneuver pursuant to the initial voice request, as determined by the processor based on the camera images in a sequence in which the obtaining of the camera images, the determining of the direction in which the user is looking, and the providing of the redundant visual verification are each performed subsequent to, and as the redundant visual confirmation of, the initial voice request;
• and
• automatically controlling the lane change maneuver based on the initial voice request, via instructions provided by the processor, based on both the voice input and the subsequent redundant visual verification in accordance with the sequence in which the obtaining of the camera images, the determining of the direction in which the user is looking, and the providing of the redundant visual verification are each performed subsequent to, and as the redundant visual confirmation of, the initial voice request.

A vehicle comprising:

• a body;
• a side view mirror;
• a drive system configured to move the body;
• a braking system;
• a steering system;
• one or more microphones that are configured to obtain a voice input from a driver of the vehicle with an initial voice request for the vehicle to make a lane change maneuver;
• one or more cameras of the vehicle that are configured to obtain camera images of the driver of the vehicle subsequent to the obtaining of the initial voice request from the voice input and as part of a redundant visual confirmation of the initial voice request;
• and
• a processor that is coupled to the one or more microphones, the one or more cameras, the drive system, the braking system, and the steering system, the processor configured to at least facilitate, subsequent to the obtaining of the initial voice request, and as part of the redundant visual confirmation of the initial voice request:
• initiating a timer when the initial voice request is received via the voice input;
• determining a direction in which the driver is looking, based on the camera images;
• providing a redundant visual confirmation of the initial voice request by verifying, using the camera images, whether a gaze of eyes of the driver is directed toward the side view mirror in a direction toward the lane change maneuver pursuant to the initial voice request within a first predetermined amount of time comprising approximately two seconds before the timer has elapsed following the receiving of the initial voice request via the voice input, and further provided that the gaze is directed toward the side view mirror for at least a second predetermined amount of time comprising approximately one quarter of one second following the receiving of the initial voice request, as determined by the processor based on the camera images in a sequence in which the obtaining of the camera images, the determining of the direction in which the driver is looking, and providing of the redundant visual verification are each performed subsequent to, and as the redundant visual confirmation of, the initial voice request;
• and
• performing the lane change maneuver pursuant to the initial voice request, if and only if it is determined by the processor based on the camera images that the gaze of eyes of the driver is directed toward the side view mirror in the direction toward the lane change maneuver from the initial voice request, within the first predetermined amount of time of approximately two seconds before the timer has elapsed following the receiving of the initial voice request, and further provided that the gaze is directed toward the side view mirror for at least the second predetermined amount of time of approximately one quarter of one second following the receiving of the initial voice request, in accordance with the sequence in which the obtaining of the camera images, the determining of the direction in which the driver is looking, and the providing of the redundant visual verification are each performed subsequent to, and as the redundant visual confirmation of, the initial voice request.