Method for determining the presence of a trailer

1. A method for determining a presence of a trailer attached to a vehicle, the method comprising:

controlling a vehicle system to obtain a primary indication of the presence of the trailer, wherein controlling the vehicle system to obtain the primary indication of the presence of the trailer comprises:

applying an electrical voltage to an electrical connector of the vehicle to which the trailer is connected; and

comparing an electrical parameter of an electrical current drawn through the electrical connector with a threshold;

controlling one or more further vehicle systems to obtain one or more secondary indications of the presence of the trailer, wherein the one or more further vehicle systems comprise a camera, and the obtaining the one or more secondary indications of the presence of the trailer comprises

capturing an image of a scene to the rear of the vehicle; and

recognizing an object within the image by analyzing data related to the image; and

determining a confidence level for the presence of the trailer attached to the vehicle based on either or both the primary indication and any of the one or more secondary indications.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

capturing a series of images of the scene to the rear of the vehicle;

determining a level of distortion of the object in each image;

obtaining data indicative of movement of the vehicle while the images were captured;

determining an expected yawing of the trailer based on the indicated movement of the vehicle; and

determining whether the distortion of the object within the images corresponds to the expected yawing of the trailer.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the object does not correspond to the trailer, and wherein the secondary indication provided by the camera is indicative that the trailer is not present.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more further vehicle systems comprise a proximity sensor, and the obtaining the one or more secondary indications of the presence of the trailer comprises:

emitting signals from the proximity sensor;

receiving reflected signals at the proximity sensor; and

analyzing the received signals to determine the presence of an object corresponding to the trailer.

5. The method of claim 4 , further comprising monitoring a distance of the object from the vehicle.

6. The method of claim 4 , wherein the one or more further vehicle systems comprise a plurality of proximity sensors that are spaced from one another, and wherein the method further comprises:

determining an angle of the object relative to the vehicle based on a distance of the object from each proximity sensor;

monitoring the angle of the object over a time period;

obtaining data indicative of movement of the vehicle during the time period in which the angle of the object is monitored;

determining an expected yawing of the trailer based on the indicated movement of the vehicle; and

determining whether the angle of the object relative to the vehicle during the time period corresponds to the expected yawing of the trailer.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more further vehicle systems comprise a vehicle behavior system, and the obtaining the one or more secondary indications of the presence of a trailer comprises:

obtaining data indicative of movement of the vehicle from the vehicle behavior system; and

comparing the indicated movement of the vehicle with an expected movement of the vehicle.

8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising activating one or more vehicle features based on the determined level of confidence that the trailer is present.

9. The method of claim 8 , further comprising activating a respective one of the one or more vehicle features only when the level of confidence that the trailer is present exceeds a respective threshold for the respective feature.

10. The method of claim 1 , further comprising determining a high level of confidence that the trailer is present if each of the primary and secondary indications are indicative that the trailer is present.

11. The method of claim 1 , further comprising determining a high level of confidence that the trailer is not present if each of the primary and secondary indications is indicative that the trailer is not present.

12. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

capturing an image of a scene to the rear of the vehicle; and

recognizing an object within the image by analyzing data related to the image.

13. A vehicle control system for determining the presence of a trailer attached to a vehicle, the vehicle control system comprising:

a controller configured:

to control a vehicle system to obtain a primary indication of the presence of the trailer by applying an electrical voltage to an electrical connector of the vehicle to which the trailer is connected and comparing an electrical parameter of an electrical current drawn through the electrical connector with a threshold, and

to control one or more further vehicle systems having a camera to obtain one or more secondary indications of the presence of the trailer by capturing an image of a scene to the rear of the vehicle and recognizing an object within the image by analyzing data related to the image;

an input configured to receive the primary indication and the or each secondary indication; and

a processor arranged to determine a confidence level for the presence of a trailer attached to the vehicle based on either or both the primary indication and the one or more secondary indications.

14. A vehicle comprising the vehicle control system of claim 13 .

15. A non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium storing instructions thereon that, when executed by one or more processors cause the one or more processors to carry out the method of claim 1 .