Detection of an object by use of a 3D camera and a radar

• US 10,114,117 B2
• Filed: 08/21/2014
• Issued: 10/30/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 09/10/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Scania CV AB (Volkswagen AG)
• Original Assignee: Scania CV AB (Volkswagen AG)
• Inventors: Salmen, Mikael, Claezon, Fredrich, Ullberg, Carl Fredrik, Lindberg, Mikael
• Primary Examiner(s): Brainard, Timothy A
• Application Number:
  US14/916,329
• Publication Number:
  US 20170038466A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,531 Days
• Field of Search: 342 52
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/865 Combination of radar systems with lidar systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/867 Combination of radar systems with cameras
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/36 with phase comparison between the received signal and the contemporaneously transmitted signal
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/894 3D imaging with simultaneous measurement of time-of-flight at a 2D array of receiver pixels, e.g. time-of-flight cameras or flash lidar
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/93271 in the front of the vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/93273 on the top of the vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/497 Means for monitoring or calibrating
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/166 for active traffic, e.g. moving vehicles, pedestrians, bikes

Abstract

A method (400) and a 3D camera (110) for a vehicle for detecting an object (130) in an area (140) for collecting (401) measurement data related to the area (140) by a sensor (310) in the 3D camera (110) using a first sensor setting, in addition, reception (402) of measurement data related to the area (140) from a radar (120), and detection (405) of the object (130) based on interpretation of collected (401) measurement data by the camera together with measurement data received (402) from the radar (120).

Claims

1. A method using a 3D camera and radar for a vehicle for detecting an object in an area, the method comprising:

collecting first measurement data related to the area by a sensor in the 3D camera, using a first sensor setting;

receiving second measurement data related to the area from a radar; and

adjusting the sensor setting of the 3D camera from the first sensor setting to an adjusted second sensor setting based on the second measurement data received from the radar to enable collection of third measurement data related to the area using the adjusted second sensor setting;

collecting the third measurement data related to the area by the sensor in the 3D camera using the adjusted second sensor setting; and

detecting the object based on interpreting of the third measurement data together with the second measurement data received from the radar.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

classifying the detected object as a soft object or a hard object based on the third measurement data collected by the 3D camera and the second measurement data received from the radar.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the 3D camera and the radar are located at a vehicle, and the method further comprises:

generating a command to carry out an accident-limiting measure for the vehicle based on the classification made of the detected object.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

presenting the detected object.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the third measurement data contains measurement points detected in the area by the sensor of the 3D camera, and wherein the interpreting of the third measurement data together with the second measurement data received from the radar comprises a matching of the measurement points with the second measurement data received from the radar.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein adjusting the sensor setting of the 3D camera comprises at least one adjustment selected from the following group:

changing an exposure time of the 3D camera, modulating a frequency of a light wave emitted from the 3D camera, and phase-shifting the emitted light wave and/or the strength of the emitted light wave.

7. A computer program recorded on a non-transitory computer-readable medium and configured for detecting an object in an area by means of the method according to claim 1 when the computer program is executed in a processor circuit in the 3D camera.

8. A 3D camera for a vehicle, arranged for detecting an object in an area, comprising:

a sensor arranged and configured to collect first measurement data related to the area using a first sensor setting and to collect second measurement data related to the area using an adjusted second sensor setting;

a signal receiver arranged and configured to receive, from a radar, a signal containing third measurement data related to the area; and

a processor circuit arranged and configured to detect an object, based on interpretation of the second measurement data together with the third measurement data received from the radar, and to adjust the sensor setting of the 3D camera from the first sensor setting to the adjusted second sensor setting, based on the third measurement data received from the radar, to enable collection of the second measurement data related to the area using the adjusted second sensor setting.

9. The 3D camera according to claim 8, wherein the processor circuit is further arranged and configured to classify the detected object as a soft object or a hard object based on the second measurement data, collected by the sensor, and the third measurement data received from the radar.

10. The 3D camera according to claim 9, wherein the 3D camera and the radar are contained in a vehicle, and wherein the processor circuit is further arranged and configured to generate a command to carry out an accident-limiting measure for the vehicle based on the classification made of the detected object.

11. The 3D camera according to claim 8, further comprising a display screen and wherein the processor circuit is further arranged and configured to send information to present the detected object on the display screen.

12. The 3D camera according to claim 8, wherein the second measurement data contains measurement points detected in the area by the sensor of the 3D camera;

and

the processor circuit is further arranged and configured to interpret the second measurement data together with the third measurement data received from the radar by matching the measurement points with the third measurement data received from the radar.

13. The 3D camera according to claim 8, wherein adjusting the sensor setting of the 3D camera comprises at least one adjustment selected from the following group:

changing an exposure time of the 3D camera, modulating a frequency of a light wave emitted from the 3D camera, and phase-shifting the emitted light wave and/or the strength of the emitted light wave.

14. The 3D camera according to claim 8, wherein the 3D camera comprises:

a time of flight camera, a stereo camera or a light-field camera.

15. A system for detecting an object in an area, wherein the system comprises:

the 3D camera according to claim 8; and

a radar arranged to emit a radio wave and receive a reflection of the radio wave from a measurement point.

16. A vehicle containing the system according to claim 15, configured to perform a method for detecting an object in an area.