VEHICLE PERIPHERY MONITORING DEVICE

• US 20120044352A1
• Filed: 01/28/2010
• Published: 02/23/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/23/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Arriver Software AB (Qualcomm, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Aimura, Makoto, Hashimoto, Hideki
• Granted Patent: US 9,067,537 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 1/24 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 2300/106 using night vision cameras
• 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: G08G 1/166 for active traffic, e.g. moving vehicles, pedestrians, bikes

Abstract

Provided is a vehicle periphery monitoring device capable of making a driver reliably recognize the shape of an object to which attention should be paid. According to an image processing unit (1) (vehicle periphery monitoring device), for example, when it is highly probable that the shape of the object is difficult to be visually recognized through the output image because of the reason that the object is present far from the vehicle or other reason, an enlarged image (Q′) of the object (Q) is displayed on an HUD (7) so as not to overlap with the object (Q).

Claims

1. A vehicle periphery monitoring device comprising:

a first image processing component configured to extract an image area corresponding to an object as an object area from an image of a periphery of a vehicle acquired by an imaging device mounted in the vehicle; and

a second image processing component configured to display an output image representing the periphery of the vehicle in accordance with the image on an image display device mounted in the vehicle,

wherein the second image processing component is configured to display an enlarged image of the object on the image display device in such a way that the enlarged image of the object overlaps with the output image but does not overlap with the object contained in the output image on the proviso that the object area is extracted by the first image processing component.

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

the second image processing component is configured to display on the image display device the enlarged image of the object on the proviso that the object satisfies a first condition containing at least one of the following aspects:

a distance from the vehicle to the object is equal to or greater than a first reference distance, a size of the object in the image of the periphery of the vehicle or in the output image is smaller than a reference size, and a velocity of the vehicle is equal to or greater than a reference velocity.

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

the second image processing component is configured to display on the image display device the enlarged image of the object in a predefined size.

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

the second image processing component is configured to display on the image display device a frame encircling the object in the output image, vary a size of the frame according to at least one of the following aspects:

a distance from the vehicle to the object, a size of the object in the image of the periphery of the vehicle or in the output image, and a velocity of the vehicle, and display the frame of the varied size on the image display device.

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

when a plurality of object areas have been extracted by the first image processing component, the second image processing component is configured to display on the image display device the enlarged image of an object on the proviso that the object among a plurality of objects corresponding to the plurality of object areas respectively satisfies a second condition containing at least one of the following aspects:

a distance from the vehicle to the object is the shortest, and a contact possibility between the object and the vehicle is the highest.

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

the second image processing component is configured to locate the enlarged image of the object in one image area where the object is present among a plurality of image areas constituting the output image and display the same on the image display device.

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

the second image processing component is configured to locate the enlarged image of the object at a position opposite to a displacement direction of the object viewed from the object in the output image and display the same on the image display device.

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

the display of the enlarged image of the object is paused or reserved on the image display device when a distance from the vehicle to the object is equal to or shorter than a second reference distance, or a time interval from a present time to another time where a distance from the vehicle to the object is predicted to be the shortest is equal to or smaller than a reference time interval.