VEHICLE PERIPHERY MONITORING DEVICE

• US 20110096956A1
• Filed: 03/04/2009
• Published: 04/28/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/12/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Arriver Software AB (Qualcomm, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Aimura, Makoto, Nagaoka, Nobuharu, Hashimoto, Hideki
• Granted Patent: US 8,189,868 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/103
• 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 1/24 in front of the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 1/30 providing vision in the non-visible spectrum, e.g. night or infrared vision
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/105 using multiple cameras
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/205 using a head-up display
• 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 2300/307 virtually distinguishing relevant parts of a scene from the background of the scene
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/8093 for obstacle warning
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/095 Predicting travel path or likelihood of collision
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/10021 Stereoscopic video; Stereoscopic image sequence
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/10048 Infrared image
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30261 Obstacle
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/248 involving reference images or patches
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/593 from stereo images
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/166 for active traffic, e.g. moving vehicles, pedestrians, bikes

Abstract

A vehicle periphery monitoring device is operable to report a high contact possibility between a vehicle and an object at an appropriate time or frequency according to the type of the object. When the object is determined to be a human being and the position of the object in real space is contained in a first contact determination area, a high contact possibility between the vehicle and the object is reported. On the other hand, when the object is determined to be a quadruped animal and the real spatial position of the object is contained in a second contact determination area, the corresponding report is made. The second contact determination area has an overlapped area that overlaps with the first contact determination area, and an overflowed area that has at least a part thereof overflowing from the first contact determination area.

Claims

1. A vehicle periphery monitoring device configured to monitor the periphery of a vehicle by using a captured image acquired by an imaging device mounted in the vehicle, comprising:

an object extraction unit configured to extract an object from the captured image;

a position determination unit configured to determine the real spatial position of the object extracted by the object extraction unit;

an object determination unit configured to determine whether the object extracted by the object extraction unit is either a human being or a quadruped animal;

a contact determination area setting unit configured to set a first contact determination area for determining the contact possibility level between the vehicle and a human being as the object when the object is determined by the object determination unit to be a human being, and to set a second contact determination area for determining the contact possibility level between the vehicle and a quadruped animal as the object when the object is determined by the object determination unit to be a quadruped animal, the second contact determination area having an overlapped area that overlaps with the first contact determination area and an overflowed area that has at least a part thereof overflowing from the first contact determination area; and

an object report unit configured to report the presence of the object to the driver on a condition that the real spatial position of the human being as the object determined by the position determination unit is contained in the first contact determination area set by the contact determination area setting unit, or on a condition that the real spatial position of the quadruped animal as the object determined by the position determination unit is contained in the second contact determination area set by the contact determination area setting unit.

2. The vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 1 is further provided with a motion vector calculation unit configured to calculate a motion vector of the object on the basis of the real spatial positions of the object determined by the position determination unit at different times,

wherein the contact determination area setting unit sets a third contact determination area outside the first contact determination area on a condition that the object is determined by the object determination unit to be a human being,

the object report unit reports the presence of the human being as the object to the driver on a condition that the real spatial position of the human being as the object determined by the position determination unit is contained in the third contact determination area set by the contact determination area setting unit and the motion vector of the human being as the object calculated by the motion vector calculation unit is pointing toward the first contact determination area.

3. The vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 1, wherein

the contact determination area setting unit sets an area in the front of the vehicle extending parallel to the travel direction of the vehicle and having a width with a predefined margin added to both lateral sides of the vehicle as the first contact determination area.

4. The vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 1, wherein

the contact determination area setting unit sets an imaging area captured by the imaging device as the second contact determination area.

5. The vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 2, wherein

the contact determination area setting unit sets an area in the front of the vehicle extending parallel to the travel direction of the vehicle and having a width with a predefined margin added to both lateral sides of the vehicle as the first contact determination area.

6. The vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 2, wherein

the contact determination area setting unit sets an imaging area captured by the imaging device as the second contact determination area.

7. The vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 3, wherein

the contact determination area setting unit sets an imaging area captured by the imaging device as the second contact determination area.