US-20260124968-A1 - SEAT CONTROLLING APPARATUS AND METHOD

Abstract

An apparatus may comprise a seat rotating circuit comprising a motor configured to swivel a seat, a sensor configured to detect a pulse generated based on driving of the motor, a switch configured to be turned on or off based on a swiveled position of the seat, and a controller circuit configured to determine the swiveled position of the seat based on a number of pulses detected via the sensor, and determine whether to activate a vehicle function based on at least one of the swiveled position of the seat, the number of the detected pulses being within a preset effective range, or the switch being turned on.

Inventors

• Dong Hoon Lee
• Seong Min Kim
• Yo Han Kim
• Mun Seung Kang

Assignees

• HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY
• KIA CORPORATION

Dates

Publication Date

20260507

Application Date

20250604

Priority Date

20241105

Claims (20)

1. 1 . An apparatus comprising: a seat rotating circuit comprising a motor configured to swivel a seat; a sensor configured to detect a pulse generated based on driving of the motor; a switch configured to be turned on or off based on a swiveled position of the seat; and a controller circuit configured to: determine the swiveled position of the seat based on a number of pulses detected via the sensor, and determine whether to activate a vehicle function, based on at least one of: the swiveled position of the seat, the number of the detected pulses being within a preset effective range, or the switch being turned on.
2. 2 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the controller circuit is configured to: based on at least one of the swiveled position of the seat being an initial position, the number of the detected pulses being within the preset effective range, or the switch being turned on, activate the vehicle function, and wherein the vehicle function comprises gear shifting and driving.
3. 3 . The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising: a command input interface configured to receive a swivel mode switching command for controlling a position of the seat, wherein the controller circuit is configured to: determine, based on the swivel mode switching command, whether to switch a swivel mode; output, based on the determination of whether to switch the swivel mode, a control signal for controlling the driving of the motor; and identify, based on the number of the detected pulses, the swiveled position of the seat.
4. 4 . The apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the controller circuit is configured to: determine the swiveled position of the seat based on a corresponding swivel mode selected from a plurality of swivel modes, wherein each of the plurality of swivel modes is associated with a respective range of a number of pulses detected via the sensor, and wherein each range of a number of pulses detected via the sensor is preset from an operation start time point of the motor to an operation completion time point of the motor for swiveling of the seat.
5. 5 . The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the plurality of swivel modes comprise: a partial swivel mode in which the seat is rotated from a return position corresponding to 0° to a first angle about a reference axis of the seat; a full swivel mode in which the seat is rotated from the return position to a second angle about the reference axis of the seat; and a return swivel mode in which the seat is rotated back to the return position.
6. 6 . The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the switch is configured to be turned on by physical contact with the seat based on the seat being swiveled to the return position.
7. 7 . The apparatus of claim 5 , further comprising: a camera positioned to face the seat and configured to obtain a seat image by photographing at least a portion of the seat.
8. 8 . The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the controller circuit is configured to determine the swiveled position of the seat based on: a rotation line of an upper plate of the seat rotating circuit and a fixing line of a lower plate of the seat rotating circuit being aligned in a straight vertical line in the seat image, and a position of the seat corresponding to the return swivel mode.
9. 9 . The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the controller circuit is configured to determine whether to switch the swivel mode based on at least one of: whether power of a vehicle provided with the seat is in a utility mode, a stopped state of the vehicle, a Park-stage state of a transmission provided in the vehicle, a seat seating state of a passenger for the seat, a fastening state of a safety buckle provided in the seat, a manual operation state of the seat, a state in which the return swivel mode of the seat is completed, a swivel operation state of another seat positioned next to the seat, or whether to inflate an airbag of the vehicle provided with the seat.
10. 10 . The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the controller circuit is configured to: determine whether to inflate the airbag, output, based on the determination of whether to inflate the airbag, information indicating whether inflation of the airbag is unavailable, identify, based on the output information, whether a user agrees to proceed with seat swiveling, and determine whether to swivel the seat based on: the identification of whether the user agrees to proceed with seat swiveling, and a swivel mode switching command received from the user.
11. 11 . A method performed by an apparatus, the method comprising: driving a motor configured to swivel a seat; detecting, via a sensor of the apparatus, a pulse generated based on the driving of the motor; detecting a state of a switch switched based on a swiveled position of the seat; determining the swiveled position of the seat based on a number of pulses detected via the sensor; and determining whether to activate a vehicle function, based on at least one of: the swiveled position of the seat, the number of the detected pulses being within a preset effective range, or the state of the switch.
12. 12 . The method of claim 11 , wherein the determining of whether to activate the vehicle function comprises activating the vehicle function based on: the swiveled position of the seat being an initial position, the number of the detected pulses being within the preset effective range, or the state of the switch being turned on, and wherein the vehicle function comprises a gear shifting and a driving.
13. 13 . The method of claim 11 , further comprising: receiving a swivel mode switching command from a command input interface; determining, based on the swivel mode switching command, whether to switch a swivel mode; and outputting, based on a determination to switch the swivel mode, a control signal for controlling the driving of the motor.
14. 14 . The method of claim 11 , wherein the determining of the swiveled position of the seat comprises, based on a corresponding swivel mode selected from a plurality of swivel modes, determining the swiveled position of the seat, wherein each of the plurality of swivel modes is associated with a respective range of a number of pulses detected via the sensor, and wherein each range of a number of pulses detected via the sensor is preset from an operation start time point of the motor to an operation completion time point of the motor for swiveling of the seat.
15. 15 . The method of claim 14 , wherein the plurality of swivel modes comprises: a partial swivel mode in which the seat is rotated from a return position corresponding to 0° to a first angle about a reference axis of the seat; a full swivel mode in which the seat is rotated from the return position to a second angle about the reference axis of the seat; and a return swivel mode in which the seat is rotated back to the return position.
16. 16 . The method of claim 15 , wherein a seat rotating circuit of the apparatus is configured to swivel the seat via the driving of the motor, and wherein the determining of the swiveled position of the seat is based on: a rotation line of an upper plate of the seat rotating circuit and a fixing line of a lower plate of the seat rotating circuit being aligned in a straight vertical line in a seat image captured by a camera of the apparatus, and a position of the seat corresponding to the return swivel mode.
17. 17 . The method of claim 15 , further comprising: determining whether to switch a swivel mode based on at least one of: whether power of a vehicle provided with the seat is in a utility mode, a stopped state of the vehicle, a Park-stage state of a transmission provided in the vehicle, a seat seating state of a passenger for the seat, a fastening state of a safety buckle provided in the seat, a manual operation state of the seat, a state in which the return swivel mode of the seat is completed, a swivel operation state of another seat positioned next to the seat, or whether to inflate an airbag of the vehicle provided with the seat.
18. 18 . An apparatus of a vehicle, the apparatus comprising: a seat; a motor configured to rotate the seat; and a controller circuit configured to: cause the seat to move into a clearance position before rotating the seat, rotate the seat based on a received mode command, obtain data, via a sensor, indicative of a position of the seat, verify, based on the data, the position of the seat after the rotation, classify the verified position of the seat as one of a plurality of zones, and control, based on the classified one of the plurality of zones, a function of the vehicle.
19. 19 . The apparatus of claim 18 , wherein the function of the vehicle comprises at least one of: enabling or disabling gear shifting, allowing or preventing vehicle driving, or transitioning a power condition of the vehicle between a utility mode and a driving mode.
20. 20 . The apparatus of claim 18 , wherein the plurality of zones comprise: a first zone corresponding to a partial swivel range from a return position to a first angle about a reference axis of the seat; and a second zone corresponding to a full swivel range from the return position to a second angle greater than the first angle.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application claims the benefit of priority to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2024-0155656, filed in the Korean Intellectual Property Office on Nov. 5, 2024, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. TECHNICAL FIELD The present disclosure relates to a seat controlling apparatus and method. BACKGROUND Seats installed inside a vehicle may rotate via a swivel device. Accordingly, passengers in the vehicle may be arranged to face each other depending on the rotation of the seats. The seats may rotate in a monitor direction so that an image is easily viewed via a pop-up display installed inside the vehicle. Thus, convenience inside the vehicle may be improved. Passenger expectations for in-vehicle comfort and functionality are evolving, leading to increased interest in enhanced space utilization enabled by adjustable seat positions. This is particularly relevant in vehicles such as electric vehicles, autonomous vehicles, and camping vehicles, where flexible interior layouts may support various use cases (e.g., entertainment, relaxation, or collaboration, etc.). SUMMARY The matters described in this Background section are only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the disclosure, and should not be taken as acknowledgment that they correspond to prior art already known to those skilled in the art. According to the present disclosure, an apparatus may comprise a seat rotating circuit may comprise a motor configured to swivel a seat, a sensor configured to detect a pulse generated based on driving of the motor, a switch configured to be turned on or off based on a swiveled position of the seat, and a controller circuit configured to, determine the swiveled position of the seat based on a number of pulses detected via the sensor, and determine whether to activate a vehicle function, based on at least one of, the swiveled position of the seat, the number of the detected pulses being within a preset effective range, or the switch being turned on, The apparatus, wherein the controller circuit is configured to, based on at least one of the swiveled position of the seat being an initial position, the number of the detected pulses being within the preset effective range, or the switch being turned on, activate the vehicle function, and, wherein the vehicle function may comprise gear shifting and driving, The apparatus may further comprise a command input interface configured to receive a swivel mode switching command for controlling a position of the seat, wherein the controller circuit is configured to, determine, based on the swivel mode switching command, whether to switch a swivel mode, output, based on the determination of whether to switch the swivel mode, a control signal for controlling the driving of the motor, and identify, based on the number of the detected pulses, the swiveled position of the seat, The apparatus, wherein the controller circuit is configured to, determine the swiveled position of the seat based on a corresponding swivel mode selected from a plurality of swivel modes, wherein each of the plurality of swivel modes is associated with a respective range of a number of pulses detected via the sensor, and wherein each range of a number of pulses detected via the sensor is preset from an operation start time point of the motor to an operation completion time point of the motor for swiveling of the seat, The apparatus, wherein the plurality of swivel modes comprise a partial swivel mode in which the seat is rotated from a return position corresponding to 0° to a first angle about a reference axis of the seat, a full swivel mode in which the seat is rotated from the return position to a second angle about the reference axis of the seat, and a return swivel mode in which the seat is rotated back to the return position, The apparatus, wherein the switch is configured to be turned on by physical contact with the seat based on the seat being swiveled to the return position, The apparatus may further comprise a camera positioned to face the seat and configured to obtain a seat image by photographing at least a portion of the seat, The apparatus, wherein the controller circuit is configured to determine the swiveled position of the seat based on, a rotation line of an upper plate of the seat rotating circuit and a fixing line of a lower plate of the seat rotating circuit being aligned in a straight vertical line in the seat image, and a position of the seat corresponding to the return swivel mode, The apparatus, wherein the controller circuit is configured to determine whether to switch the swivel mode based on at least one of, whether power of a vehicle provided with the seat is in a utility mode, a stopped state of the vehicle, a Park-stage state of a transmission provided in the vehicle, a seat seating state of a passenger for the seat, a fastening state of a safety buckle provided in the seat, a manual operation state of