Detecting an eye of a user and determining location and blinking state of the user

• US 20060149426A1
• Filed: 01/04/2005
• Published: 07/06/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/04/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies General IP PTE Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Avago Technologies General IP PTE Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Horner, James G., Fouquet, Julie E., Haven, Richard E., Wenstrand, John Stewart, Unkrich, Mark A., Usikov, Daniel, Sachs, Todd Stephen
• Application Number:
  US11/028,151
• Publication Number:
  US 20060149426A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/255 Eye recognition

Abstract

A method and apparatus for detecting a location of an eye of a user using an automated detection process, and automatically determining a position of a head of the user with respect to an object based on the detected location of the eye. A location of an eye of a user inside a vehicle is detected using the automated detection process, at least one of height and orientation information of the user is automatically determined based on the detected location of the eye, and a mechanical device inside the vehicle is controlled in accordance with the determined information. Moreover, an eye blinking pattern of a user is detected using an infrared reflectivity of an eye of the user, and messages are transmitted from the user in accordance with the detected eye blinking pattern of the user.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

detecting a location of an eye of a user using an automated detection process; and

automatically determining a position of a head of the user with respect to an object based on the detected location of the eye.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the automated detection process uses an infrared reflectivity of the eye to detect the location of the eye.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the automated detection process illuminates the eye from at least two angles and detects the location of the eye using a difference between reflections responsive to the illumination.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein said detecting of the location of the eye comprises:

detecting the location of the eye by at least two sensors and using a triangulation method in accordance with detection results of said at least two sensors.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein said determining of the position of the head comprises:

determining the position of the head in a three-dimensional space.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein

the head includes two eyes,

the detecting of the location of the eye comprises detecting locations of the two eyes, respectively, and

the determining of the position of the head comprises determining the position of the head in accordance with an interocular distance between the two eyes.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the object is located inside a vehicle and the position of the head is determined with respect to the object in the vehicle.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the head, the eye and the object exist in an x-y-z space, with the head and the eye in an x-y plane and the object in a z-axis perpendicular to the x-y plane.

9. A method according to claim 1, further comprising:

automatically adjusting a mechanical device in a vehicle in accordance with the determined position.

10. A method according to claim 1, wherein the determined position indicates an impending crash, and the method further comprises:

automatically implementing pre-crash corrective action and/or post-crash corrective action in accordance with the determined position.

11. A method, comprising:

detecting a location of an eye of a user using an automated detection process; and

automatically determining at least one of height and orientation information of the user with respect to an object based on the detected location of the eye.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the automated detection process uses an infrared reflectivity of the eye to detect the location of the eye.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein the automated detection process illuminates the eye from at least two angles and detects the location of the eye using a difference between reflections responsive to the illumination.

14. The method according to claim 11, wherein the object is located inside a vehicle and the at least one of height and orientation information of the user is determined with respect to the object in the vehicle.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein the object inside the vehicle is a mechanical device of the vehicle, and the method further comprises:

controlling the mechanical device in accordance with the determined information.

16. The method according to claim 11, wherein the object is a mechanical device in a vehicle, and the method further comprises:

automatically controlling the mechanical device of the vehicle in accordance with the determined information.

17. The method according to claim 11, wherein the object is a mechanical device in a vehicle, and the method further comprises:

controlling another mechanical device in the vehicle in accordance with the determined information.

18. The method according to claim 11, wherein the object is an airbag in a vehicle, and the method further comprises:

controlling deployment of the airbag in accordance with the determined information.

19. The method according to claim 11, wherein the object is a side view mirror or a rear view mirror in a vehicle, and a position of the side view mirror or the rear view mirror is controlled in accordance with the determined information.

20. The method according to claim 11, wherein the object is a seat in a vehicle, and a position of the seat is controlled in accordance with the determined information.

21. The method according to claim 11, wherein the user has two eyes and said detecting of the location of the eye comprises detecting locations of the two eyes, respectively, in accordance with an interocular distance between the two eyes.

22. The method according to claim 21, wherein said detecting of the location of the two eyes comprises detecting the location of the two eyes in accordance with a database having information related to interocular distances between eyes of a plurality of users.

23. A method according to claim 11, wherein the user and the object are inside a vehicle, and the determined information indicates an impending crash of the vehicle, and the method further comprises:

automatically implementing a pre-crash and/or post-crash corrective action in accordance with the determined information.

24. A method, comprising:

detecting a location of an eye of a user inside a vehicle using an infrared reflectivity of the eye or a differential angle illumination of the eye;

automatically determining at least one of height and orientation information of the user based on the detected location of the eye; and

controlling a mechanical device inside the vehicle in accordance with the determined information.

25. The method according to claim 24, wherein the mechanical device is an airbag, a side view mirror, a rear view mirror, or a seat of the vehicle.

26. The method according to claim 24, wherein said detecting of the location of the eye comprises:

detecting the location of the eye by at least two sensors and using a triangulation method in accordance with detection results of said at least two sensors.

27. The method according to claim 24, wherein the user has two eyes and said detecting of the location of the eye comprises detecting locations of the two eyes, respectively, in accordance with an interocular distance between the two eyes.

28. A method, comprising:

detecting a location of an eye of a user inside a vehicle using an infrared reflectivity of the eye or a differential angle illumination of the eye;

automatically determining a position of a head of the user based on the detected location of the eye; and

controlling a mechanical device inside the vehicle in accordance with the determined position of the head.

29. The method according to claim 28, wherein the mechanical device is an airbag, a side view mirror, a rear view mirror, or a seat of the vehicle.

30. The method according to claim 28, wherein said detecting of the location of the eye comprises:

detecting the location of the eye by at least two sensors and using a triangulation method.

31. The method according to claim 28, wherein said determining of the position of the head comprises:

determining the position of the head in a three-dimensional space.

32. The method according to claim 28, wherein

the head includes two eyes,

the detecting of the location of the eye comprises detecting locations of the two eyes, respectively, and

the determining of the position of the head comprises determining the position of the head in accordance with an interocular distance between the two eyes.

33. The method according to claim 28, wherein said determining of the position of the head comprises:

extracting facial feature information of the user relative to the detected location of the eye and determining the position of the head in accordance with the extracted information.

34. A method, comprising:

detecting a location of an eye of a user using an automated detection process;

determining a position of the user based on the detected location of the eye; and

automatically implementing a pre-crash and/or a post-crash action in accordance with the determined position.

35. A method, comprising:

detecting an eye blinking pattern of a user using an infrared reflectivity of an eye of the user; and

transmitting messages from the user in accordance with the detected eye blinking pattern of the user.

36. The method according to claim 35, wherein the eye blinking pattern is detected from multiple directions.