Image sensing system for a vehicle
First Claim
1. An image sensing system for a vehicle, said image sensing system comprising:
- an imaging sensor;
said imaging sensor comprising a two-dimensional array of light sensing photosensor elements formed on a semiconductor substrate;
a logic and control circuit;
at least a portion of said logic and control circuit commonly formed on said semiconductor with said array of light sensing elements;
said logic and control circuit comprising an image processor for processing image data derived from said imaging sensor;
said imaging sensor disposed at an interior portion of the vehicle and having a field of view;
at least one illumination source illuminating a region of interest within the field of view of said imaging sensor;
said illumination source principally radiating in a spectral region that is outside the visible light spectrum; and
wherein the spectral region radiated by said illumination source comprises wavelengths within the responsive range of said imaging sensor.
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Abstract
An image sensing system for a vehicle includes an imaging sensor comprising a two-dimensional array of light sensing photosensor elements, preferably formed on a semiconductor substrate, and a logic and control circuit, preferably with at least a portion of the logic and control circuit commonly formed on a semiconductor with the array of light sensing elements. The logic and control circuit comprises an image processor for processing image data derived from the imaging sensor. The imaging sensor is disposed at an interior portion of the cabin of the vehicle and has a field of view. At least one illumination source illuminates a region of interest within the field of view of the imaging sensor and the illumination source principally radiates in a spectral region that is outside the visible light spectrum and that comprises wavelengths within the responsive range of the imaging sensor.
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Citations
68 Claims
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1. An image sensing system for a vehicle, said image sensing system comprising:
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an imaging sensor;
said imaging sensor comprising a two-dimensional array of light sensing photosensor elements formed on a semiconductor substrate;
a logic and control circuit;
at least a portion of said logic and control circuit commonly formed on said semiconductor with said array of light sensing elements;
said logic and control circuit comprising an image processor for processing image data derived from said imaging sensor;
said imaging sensor disposed at an interior portion of the vehicle and having a field of view;
at least one illumination source illuminating a region of interest within the field of view of said imaging sensor;
said illumination source principally radiating in a spectral region that is outside the visible light spectrum; and
wherein the spectral region radiated by said illumination source comprises wavelengths within the responsive range of said imaging sensor. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29)
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30. An image sensing system for a vehicle, said image sensing system comprising:
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an imaging sensor;
said imaging sensor comprising a two-dimensional array of light sensing photosensor elements;
said imaging sensor disposed at an interior portion of the vehicle and having a field of view;
at least one illumination source illuminating a region of interest within the field of view of said imaging sensor;
said illumination source principally radiating in a spectral region that is outside the visible light spectrum;
wherein the spectral region radiated by said illumination source comprises wavelengths within the responsive range of said imaging sensor;
wherein said illumination source comprises a near-infrared source, said near-infrared source principally radiating in the spectral region between about 700 nm and about 1200 nm; and
wherein said imaging sensor has a peak in its normalized spectral response between about 750 nm and about 1200 nm. - View Dependent Claims (31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43)
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44. An image sensing system for a vehicle, said image sensing system comprising:
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an imaging sensor;
said imaging sensor comprising a two-dimensional array of light sensing photosensor elements formed on a semiconductor substrate;
said imaging sensor disposed at an interior portion of the vehicle proximate the windshield of the vehicle and wherein said imaging sensor has a forward field of view to the exterior of the vehicle through a windshield area that is swept by the windshield wipers;
at least one illumination source illuminating a region of interest within the field of view of said imaging sensor;
said illumination source principally radiating in a spectral region that is outside the visible light spectrum;
wherein the spectral region radiated by said illumination source comprises wavelengths within the responsive range of said imaging sensor;
wherein said illumination source comprises a near-infrared source; and
wherein said interior portion is generally centrally located along the vehicle axis and is relatively high in the interior of the vehicle. - View Dependent Claims (45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56)
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57. An image sensing system for a vehicle, said image sensing system comprising:
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an imaging sensor;
said imaging sensor comprising a two-dimensional array of light sensing photosensor elements;
said imaging sensor disposed at an interior portion of the vehicle proximate the windshield of the vehicle and wherein said imaging sensor has a forward field of view to the exterior of the vehicle through a windshield area that is swept by the windshield wipers;
at least one illumination source illuminating a region of interest within the field of view of said imaging sensor;
said illumination source principally radiating in a spectral region that is outside the visible light spectrum;
wherein the spectral region radiated by said illumination source comprises wavelengths within the responsive range of said imaging sensor;
wherein said illumination source comprises a near-infrared source; and
wherein said image sensing system provides a video output to a display device located within the vehicle to provide a display of the imaged scene for viewing by the driver of the vehicle. - View Dependent Claims (58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68)
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Specification