Driver's eye image detecting device and method in drowsy driver warning system

• US 20050163383A1
• Filed: 08/30/2004
• Published: 07/28/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 01/26/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Kim, Hee-Jung, Lee, Ho-Jun, Park, Kyong-Ha
• Application Number:
  US10/929,258
• Publication Number:
  US 20050163383A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/209
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/18 Eye characteristics, e.g. of the iris

Abstract

A device for detecting a driver'"'"'s eye image, which includes a camera for photographing a driver who is sitting in a car and outputting a photographed facial image of the driver, an eye template storing section for storing an eye template in the form of a standard human eye, and a control section for detecting an eye image from the driver'"'"'s facial image inputted from the camera using the stored eye template. The device can rapidly obtain a driver'"'"'s eye image for a drowsy driver warning system.

Claims

1. A device for detecting a driver'"'"'s eye image, which comprises:

a camera for photographing and outputting a facial image of a driver;

an eye template storing section for storing an eye template in the form of a human eye; and

a control section for detecting an eye image from the driver'"'"'s facial image inputted from the camera using the stored eye template.

2. The device according to claim 1, wherein said eye template consists of pixels corresponding to a sclera area and pixels corresponding to an iris-pupil area of a standard human eye.

3. The device according to claim 2, wherein the number of pixels included in said eye template varies depending on a focal length of a camera lens and a position of the camera.

4. A method for detecting a driver'"'"'s eye image in a drowsy driver warning system, which comprises:

reading a first eye template, which consists of pixels corresponding to a sclera area and pixels corresponding to an iris-pupil area of a standard human eye, from an eye template storing section when a driver'"'"'s facial image is inputted from a camera;

detecting pixels identical to those included in the first eye template from the inputted driver'"'"'s facial image, using the first eye template; and

obtaining an eye image including the detected pixels.

5. The method according to claim 4, further comprising generating a second eye template using the obtained eye image and storing the second eye template in said eye template storing section.

6. A method for detecting a driver'"'"'s eye image in a drowsy driver warning system, which comprises:

storing an eye template in an eye template storing section;

reading the eye template stored in the eye template storing section when a driver'"'"'s facial image is inputted from a camera;

detecting pixels identical those included in the eye template from the inputted driver'"'"'s facial image, using the eye template; and

obtaining an eye image including the detected pixels.

7. The method according to claim 6, further comprising providing an alarm if comparison of the eye template to the obtained eye image determines that a pupil has expanded beyond a predetermined size.

8. The method according to claim 6, further comprising providing an alarm if comparison of the eye template to the obtained eye image detects a change in pupil size beyond a predetermined size.