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US 5,451,822 AGranted
Electronic control system
AssigneeGentex Corporation
InventorsJon H. Bechtel, David J. Schmidt
Life of this patent
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AssigneeGentex Corporation
InventorsJon H. Bechtel, David J. Schmidt
Estimating the term…
An electronic control system for controlling automotive vehicle vision related equipment including an electrochromic rearview mirror comprising an electrochromic variable reflectance member the reflectivity of which varies as a function of electrical signal levels applied thereto, and an electrically energizable vehicle headlamp, the system including ambient light sensing means, glare causing light sensing means and sky light sensing means, each of said light sensing means being effective to generate an electrical signal indicative of the sensed light level, the system also including microprocessor means operable to apply electrical control signal levels to the electrochromic variable reflectance member to change the reflectivity thereof as a function of sensed ambient and glare causing light levels, the system also including means to effect energization of the vehicle headlamp as a function of the sensed sky light level. The system may also include means to effect energization of the vehicle headlamp as a function of the actuation of the vehicle windshield wiper.
In an electronic control system for controlling automotive vehicle vision related equipment, said vision related equipment including a rearview mirror comprising an electrochromic variable reflectance member the reflectivity of which varies as a function of electrical signal levels applied thereto, said system including microcontroller means, ambient light sensing means effective to sense ambient light and generate a corresponding analog electrical signal indicative of the ambient light level, glare sensing means effective to sense glare causing light and generate a corresponding analog electrical signal indicative of the glare causing light level, means digitizing each of the analog signals and converting each of the digitized analog signals to a corresponding logarithmic signal representation which is accessible to said microcontroller means, means for supplying electrical power to said system, and means electrically connected to said microcontroller means and operable to apply an electrical control signal to said electrochromic variable reflectance member to change the reflectance thereof as a function of the logarithmic signal of the sensed ambient light level and the logarithmic signal of the sensed glare causing light level.
An electronic control system for controlling automotive vehicle vision related equipment, said vision related equipment including an electrochromic mirror having a full reflectance mode and a partial reflectance mode and the reflectivity of which varies as a function of an electrical control signal applied thereto, and an electrically energizable vehicle headlamp, said system including a microcontroller, forwardly facing sensor means effective to detect light forward of the vehicle and generate a corresponding analog forward electrical signal indicative of the forward light level, backwardly facing sensing means effective to detect light rearward of the vehicle and generate a corresponding analog rearward electrical signal indicative of the rearward light level, an upwardly facing sky light sensor means effective signal indicative of the rearward light level, an upwardly facing sky light sensor means effective to sense sky light and generate a corresponding electrical signal indicative of the sky light level, means converting the analog electrical signal indicative of the forward light level and the analog electrical signal indicative of the rearward light level to corresponding logarithmic signals, means connecting the logarithmic signals indicative of the forward light level and the rearward light level to said microcontroller, means including an unswitched power supply path and an ignition switched power supply path for applying electrical power to said system, means electrically connected to said microcontroller and operable to apply an electrical control signal to said electrochromic mirror to change the reflectivity thereof as a function of the logarithmic signal of the sensed forward light level and the logarithmic signal of the sensed rearward light level, and means electrically connected to said microcontroller and operable to effect energization of said vehicle headlamp as a function of the sensed sky light level.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.