In-Vehicle Image Display Device

• US 20110025848A1
• Filed: 07/27/2010
• Published: 02/03/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/28/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Kiyohara, Masahiro, Irie, Kota, YUMIBA, Ryo, Monji, Tatsuhiko
• Granted Patent: US 8,421,863 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/148
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 1/00 Optical viewing arrangements; Real-time viewing arrangements for drivers or passengers using optical image capturing systems, e.g. cameras or video systems specially adapted for use in or on vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 1/27 providing all-round vision, e.g. using omnidirectional cameras
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/105 using multiple cameras
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/302 combining image information with GPS information or vehicle data, e.g. vehicle speed, gyro, steering angle data
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/303 using joined images, e.g. multiple camera images
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/305 merging camera image with lines or icons
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/306 using a re-scaling of images
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/605 the adjustment being automatic
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/607 from a bird's eye viewpoint
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/70 characterised by an event-triggered choice to display a specific image among a selection of captured images
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/806 for aiding parking
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 15/029 Steering assistants using warnings or proposing actions to the driver without influencing the steering system

Abstract

Provided is an in-vehicle image display device capable of providing, from among images of the peripheral area of a vehicle that can change in accordance with the driving state, an image of a part needed by the driver at an appropriate timing so that the driver can recognize the positional relationship between the vehicle and the peripheral area of the vehicle. Images captured with in-vehicle cameras are acquired, and a vehicle periphery image is generated from such images. Then, a collision-warned part of the vehicle that has a possibility of hitting a nearby object is selected based on the vehicle driving state, and the acquired image is processed to generate an enlarged image of the peripheral area of the collision-warned part of the vehicle selected by the collision-warned part selection part. Then, a composite display image, in which the positions of the enlarged image and the vehicle periphery image are displayed in a correlated manner, is generated and displayed.

Claims

1. An in-vehicle image display device that displays images captured with a plurality of in-vehicle cameras, comprising:

an image acquisition unit configured to acquire images captured with the in-vehicle cameras;

a vehicle periphery image generation unit configured to generate an image of the peripheral area of the vehicle based on the images acquired with the image acquisition unit;

a collision-warned part selection unit configured to select a collision-warned part of the vehicle that has a possibility of hitting a nearby object around the vehicle based on a driving state of the vehicle;

an enlarged image generation unit configured to process at least one of the images acquired with the image acquisition unit to generate an enlarged image of a peripheral area of the collision-warned part of the vehicle selected by the collision-warned part selection unit;

a composite display image generation unit configured to generate a composite display image composed of the enlarged image generated by the enlarged image generation unit and the image of the peripheral area of the vehicle generated by the vehicle periphery image generation unit, the composite display image being displayed in a form in which positions of the enlarged image and the image of the peripheral area of the vehicle are correlated with each other; and

a display unit configured to display the composite display image generated by the composite display image generation unit.

2. The in-vehicle image display device according to claim 1, further comprising an object detection unit configured to detect an object existing around the vehicle, wherein:

the collision-warned part selection unit selects, from among candidate parts that can be the collision-warned part of the vehicle, a candidate part located near the object detected by the object detection unit, as the collision-warned part.

3. The in-vehicle image display device according to claim 2, wherein the object detection unit includes at least one of a nearby object detection sensor configured to detect an object existing around the vehicle, and a nearby object recognition unit configured to recognize an object existing around the vehicle based on the image of the peripheral area of the vehicle.

4. The in-vehicle image display device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a vehicle signal acquisition unit configured to acquire a vehicle signal of the vehicle; and

a driving state estimation unit configured to estimate the driving state of the vehicle based on the vehicle signal acquired with the vehicle signal acquisition unit, wherein;

the collision-warned part selection unit selects the collision-warned part based on the driving state of the vehicle estimated by the driving state estimation unit.

5. The in-vehicle image display device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a vehicle signal estimation unit configured to estimate a vehicle signal of the vehicle through image recognition using as an input the images acquired with the image acquisition unit; and

a driving state estimation unit configured to estimate the driving state of the vehicle based on the vehicle signal estimated by the vehicle signal estimation unit, wherein;

the collision-warned part selection unit selects the collision-warned part based on the driving state of the vehicle estimated by the driving state estimation unit.

6. The in-vehicle image display device according to claim 1, wherein:

the vehicle periphery image generation unit generates, as the image of the peripheral area of the vehicle, a top-view image through a viewpoint conversion process such that the resulting image appears to be viewed from a virtual viewpoint right above the vehicle, and

the composite display image generation unit generates a composite display image in which the top-view image generated by the vehicle periphery image generation unit and the enlarged image generated by the enlarged image generation unit are arranged side-by-side.

7. The in-vehicle image display device according to claim 6, wherein the composite display image includes displayed thereon:

a marker indicating a position of the collision-warned part on the top-view image; and

a connecting line that connects the marker and the enlarged image of the collision-warned part indicated by the marker.

8. The in-vehicle image display device according to claim 6, wherein the composite display image generation unit generates a composite display image having, on at least one of the enlarged image and the image of the peripheral area of the vehicle, a guide line that indicates a distance from the vehicle.

9. The in-vehicle image display device according to claim 6, wherein the composite display image generation unit generates a composite display image having, on at least one of the enlarged image and the image of the peripheral area of the vehicle, a semi-transparent image of the vehicle superimposed thereon.

10. The in-vehicle image display device according to claim 1, wherein:

the display unit displays a menu screen for setting a parameter for estimating the driving state of the vehicle, and

the driving state estimation unit adjusts the estimation of the driving state of the vehicle in accordance with the parameter set on the menu screen.

11. The in-vehicle image display device according to claim 1, wherein the driving state estimated by the driving state estimation unit is at least one of perpendicular parking, parallel parking, forward parking, and driving past an oncoming vehicle.