IMAGE CAPTURING DEVICE, OPERATOR MONITORING DEVICE, METHOD FOR MEASURING DISTANCE TO FACE, AND PROGRAM

• US 20110304746A1
• Filed: 02/17/2010
• Published: 12/15/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/02/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Iijima, Tomokuni, Tamaki, Satoshi, Tsurube, Tomoyuki, Oka, Kenji, Maruya, Kensuke
• Application Number:
  US13/201,340
• Publication Number:
  US 20110304746A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/229.1
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0093 with means for monitoring data relating to the user, e.g. head-tracking, eye-tracking
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 7/097 for control of both exposure time and aperture
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 7/28 Circuitry to measure or to take account of the object contrast
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/239 using two 2D image sensors having a relative position equal to or related to the interocular distance H04N13/243 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/611 where the recognised objects include parts of the human body
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/71 Circuitry for evaluating the brightness variation

Abstract

An imaging device (1) includes a camera unit (3) that captures images of the same object, respectively, using two optical systems, a face part detection unit (9) that detects a plurality of face parts composing a face included in each of the images captured by the camera unit (3), a face part luminance calculation unit (10) that calculates luminance of the detected plurality of face parts, and an exposure control value determination unit (12) that determines an exposure control value of the camera unit (3) based on the luminance of the plurality of face parts. A distance measurement unit (17) in the imaging device (1) measures distances to the face parts based on the images captured by the camera unit (3) using the exposure control value. Thus, the imaging device (1) can measure the distances to the face parts with high accuracy.

Claims

1. An imaging device, comprising:

a camera unit that respectively captures, by using at least two optical systems, images of the same object;

a face part detection unit that detects, from each of the images captured by the camera unit, a plurality of face parts composing a face included in the image;

a face part luminance calculation unit that calculates luminance of the detected plurality of face parts;

an exposure control value determination unit that determines an exposure control value of the camera unit based on the luminance of the plurality of face parts; and

a distance measurement unit that measures distances to the plurality of face parts based on the at least two images captured by the camera unit using the corrected exposure control value, wherein

the exposure control value determination unit determines the exposure control value of the camera unit so that the maximum one of the luminance of the plurality of face parts becomes a predetermined target luminance.

3. The imaging device according to claim 1, wherein the exposure control value determination unit determines, when a difference between the luminance of a pair of face parts symmetrically arranged out of the plurality of face parts is greater than a predetermined threshold value, the exposure control value of the camera unit so that the maximum one of the luminance of the face parts excluding the pair of face parts becomes a target luminance.

4. The imaging device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising

a face detection unit that detects the faces respectively included in the images captured by the camera unit,

a face luminance calculation unit that calculates luminance of the detected faces, and

an exposure control value correction unit that corrects the exposure control value of the camera unit based on the luminance of the faces,

wherein the exposure control value correction unit corrects the exposure control value of the camera unit so that the luminance of the face parts included in the at least two images captured by the camera unit become the same.

5. The imaging device according to claim 4, wherein

the exposure control value includes a diaphragm value, an exposure time, and a gain,

the exposure control value correction unit makes the respective diaphragm values and exposure times of the two optical systems the same, and corrects the respective gains of the two optical systems so that the luminance of the face parts included in the two images become the same.

6. The imaging device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the exposure control value determination unit sets a target luminance depending on the selected one of the luminance of the plurality of face parts, and determines the exposure control value of the camera unit so that the selected luminance becomes the target luminance.

7. The imaging device according to claim 6, wherein the exposure control value determination unit sets the target luminance to a smaller value when the selected luminance is larger than a predetermined threshold value than that when the selected luminance is smaller than the threshold value.

8. The imaging device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the exposure control value determination unit controls a frequency at which the exposure control value of the camera unit is found based on the presence or absence of a saturation signal indicating that the luminance of the face part is higher than a predetermined reference saturation value.

9. The imaging device according to claim 8, wherein the exposure control value determination unit determines the exposure control value of the camera unit every time the image is captured when the saturation signal is present.

2. (canceled)

10. A driver monitoring device, comprising:

a camera unit that respectively captures, by using at least two optical systems, images of a driver as an object of shooting;

a face part detection unit that detects a plurality of face parts composing a face of the driver from each of the images captured by the camera unit;

a face part luminance calculation unit that calculates luminance of the detected plurality of face parts;

an exposure control value determination unit that determines an exposure control value of the camera unit based on the luminance of the plurality of face parts;

a distance measurement unit that measures distances to the plurality of face parts of the driver based on the at least two images captured by the camera unit using the exposure control value;

a face model generation unit that generates a face model of the driver based on distance measurement results of the plurality of face parts; and

a face tracking processing unit that performs processing for tracking a direction of the face of the driver based on the generated face model, wherein

the exposure control value determination unit determines the exposure control value of the camera unit so that the maximum one of the luminance of the plurality of face parts becomes a predetermined target luminance.

11. A method for measuring a distance to a face, comprising:

capturing respectively, by using at least two optical systems, images of the same object;

detecting a plurality of face parts composing the face included in each of the captured images;

calculating luminance of the detected plurality of face parts;

determining an exposure control value for image capturing based on the luminance of the plurality of face parts so that the maximum one of the luminance of the plurality of face parts becomes a predetermined target luminance; and

measuring distances to the faces based on the at least two images captured using the exposure control value.

12. A program for measuring a distance to a face, causing a computer to execute:

processing for detecting a plurality of face parts composing the face included in each of images of the same object, the images being respectively captured by at least two optical systems;

processing for calculating luminance of the detected plurality of face parts;

processing for determining an exposure control value for image capturing based on the luminance of the plurality of face parts so that the maximum one of the luminance of the plurality of face parts becomes a predetermined target luminance; and

processing for measuring distances to the faces based on the at least two images captured using the exposure control value.