OBJECT DETECTION DEVICE

• US 20130082179A1
• Filed: 06/30/2011
• Published: 04/04/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/01/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Fukui, Suguru, Hatatani, Teruki
• Granted Patent: US 9,212,951 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 250/338.3
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 1/44 Electric circuits for command of an exposure part G03B7/02
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 1/46 using a capacitor
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 5/34 using capacitors, e.g. pyroelectric capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/191 using pyroelectric sensor means
• CPC Class Codes: H01C 7/02 having positive temperature coefficient ceramics C04B
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2224/48091 Arched
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00014 the subject-matter covered by the group, the symbol of which is combined with the symbol of this group, being disclosed without further technical details

Abstract

The object detection device includes: a pyroelectric element configured to output a current signal in response to a change in an amount of infrared light; an I/V conversion circuit including an operational amplifier, a capacitive element serving as a feedback circuit, and a discharging circuit, and configured to convert the current signal to a voltage signal; an A/D conversion circuit configured to convert the voltage signal to a first digital signal; a digital filter configured to extract a detection component having a frequency included in a frequency band associated with an object from a waveform represented by the first digital signal by subjecting the first digital signal to an arithmetic processing, and create a second digital signal representing a waveform of the detection component; a judgment circuit configured to detect the target based on the second digital signal; and a control unit configured to control the discharging circuit based on a period corresponding to a predetermined frequency not greater than a lower limit of the frequency band to discharge electric charges stored in the capacitive element.

Claims

1. An object detection device for detecting an object in a target space, said object detection device comprising:

a pyroelectric element configured to output a current signal in response to a change in an amount of infrared light received from the target space;

an I/V conversion circuit including an operational amplifier connected to said pyroelectric element, a capacitive element connected to said operational amplifier to serve as a feedback circuit, and a discharging circuit for discharging said capacitive element, said I/V conversion circuit being configured to convert the current signal to a voltage signal and output the voltage signal;

an A/D conversion circuit configured to convert the voltage signal to a first digital signal and output the first digital signal;

a digital filter configured to extract a detection component having a frequency included in a frequency band associated with the object, from a waveform represented by the first digital signal, by subjecting the first digital signal to an arithmetic processing, and create a second digital signal representing a waveform of the detection component, and output the second digital signal;

a judgment circuit configured to judge, based on the second digital signal, whether or not the object exists in the target space; and

a control unit configured to control said discharging circuit in such a manner to eliminate a low-frequency component having a frequency not greater than a predetermined frequency from the voltage signal, the predetermined frequency being not greater than a lower limit of the frequency band,

wherein said control unit is configured to control said discharging circuit based on a reset period corresponding to the predetermined frequency to discharge the electric charges stored in said capacitive element.

2. An object detection device as set forth in claim 1, wherein

said control unit includes an oscillation circuit and a reset circuit, and

said oscillation circuit is configured to create a pulse signal each time the reset period elapses and output the pulse signal to said reset circuit, and

said reset circuit is configured to create a reset signal based on the pulse signal and output the reset signal to said discharging circuit, and

said discharging circuit is configured to form a path for discharging the electric charges stored in said capacitive element in response to receipt of the reset signal.

3. An object detection device as set forth in claim 2, wherein

said control unit includes a zero crossing detection circuit configured to judge whether or not a magnitude of the waveform represented by the second digital signal is identical to a predetermined value, and to, upon determining the magnitude of the waveform represented by the second digital signal is identical to the predetermined value, output a zero crossing detection signal to said reset circuit, and

said reset circuit is configured to, in response to first receipt of the zero crossing detection signal subsequent to the receipt of the pulse signal, to output the reset signal to said discharging circuit, and

the predetermined value is defined as a value corresponding to a magnitude of the voltage signal obtained when electric charges are not stored in said capacitive element.

4. An object detection device as set forth in claim 3, wherein

said reset circuit is configured to, unless receiving the zero crossing detection signal before a lapse of predetermined time from the receipt of the pulse signal, output the reset signal to said discharging circuit after a lapse of the predetermined time.

5. An object detection device as set forth in claim 1, wherein

said control unit includes an abnormality judgment circuit configured to judge whether or not a magnitude of the waveform represented by the second digital signal continuously exceeds a predetermined threshold for a prescribed time period, and to, upon determining the magnitude of the waveform represented by the second digital signal continuously exceeds the predetermined threshold for the prescribed time period, output an abnormality signal to said reset circuit, and

said reset circuit is configured to output the reset signal to said discharging circuit in response to receipt of the abnormality signal.

6. An object detection device as set forth in claim 2, wherein

said judgment circuit is configured to compare a magnitude of the wavelength represented by the second digital signal with a judgment value, and to, upon determining that the magnitude of the wavelength represented by the second digital signal exceeds the judgment value, conclude the object exists, and

said control unit includes an inhibition circuit configured to judge whether or not the magnitude of the wavelength represented by the second digital signal exceeds an inhibition value less than the judgment value, and to output an inhibition signal to said reset circuit upon determining that the magnitude of the wavelength represented by the second digital signal exceeds the inhibition value, and to output a cancel signal to said reset circuit upon determining that the magnitude of the wavelength represented by the second digital signal does not exceed the inhibition value, and

said reset circuit is configured such that, once said reset circuit receives the inhibition signal, said reset circuit does not output the reset signal unless receiving the cancel signal.

7. An object detection device as set forth in claim 2, wherein

said A/D conversion circuit has an upper limit of the magnitude of the voltage signal which said A/D conversion circuit can convert, and

said control unit includes a protection circuit configured to judge whether or not the magnitude of the voltage signal exceeds a border value not greater than the upper limit, and to output an excess signal to said reset circuit upon determining the magnitude of the voltage signal exceeds the border value, and

said reset circuit is configured to output the reset signal to said discharging circuit in response to receipt of the excess signal.

8. An object detection device as set forth in claim 1, wherein

said pyroelectric element has a first end and a second end, and

said operational amplifier includes a first operational amplifier having a first inverting input terminal and a first output terminal, and a second operational amplifier having a second inverting input terminal and a second output terminal, and

said first inverting input terminal is connected to said first end, and

said second inverting input terminal is connected to said second end, and

said capacitive element includes a first capacitive element and a second capacitive element, and

said first capacitive element is interposed between said first inverting input terminal and said first output terminal, and

said second capacitive element is interposed between said second inverting input terminal and said second output terminal, and

said I/V conversion circuit includes a differential circuit configured to output a difference between a voltage of said first output terminal and a voltage of said second output terminal, and

said voltage signal is defined as a signal representing a waveform of the difference.

9. An object detection device as set forth in claim 8, wherein

said I/V conversion circuit includes an abnormality detection circuit,

said abnormality detection circuit is configured to obtain at least one of the voltage of said first output terminal and the voltage of said second output terminal as a detection voltage, and judge whether or not the detection voltage is included in a predetermined range, and output an abnormality detection signal to said reset circuit upon determining that the detection voltage is not included in the predetermined range, and

said reset circuit is configured to output the reset signal to said discharging circuit in response to receipt of the abnormality detection signal.

10. An object detection device as set forth in claim 1 further comprising a correction circuit,

wherein said correction circuit includes:

an adjustment unit configured to create a correction digital signal indicative of a low-frequency component having a frequency not greater than a predetermined frequency not greater than the lower limit of the voltage signal based on the first digital signal; and

a correction D/A converter configured to convert the correction digital signal to a correction analog signal and output the correction analog signal to said A/D conversion circuit, and

said A/D conversion circuit is configured to subtract the correction analog signal from the voltage signal and convert the resultant voltage signal to the first digital signal.

11. An object detection device as set forth in claim 10, wherein

said A/D conversion circuit includes an integrator, a quantizer, and a D/A converter, and

said integrator includes a third operational amplifier and a third capacitive element, and

said third operational amplifier has a third inverting input terminal connected to said I/V conversion circuit to receive the voltage signal, a third non-inverting input terminal, and a third output terminal, and

said third capacitive element is interposed between said third inverting input terminal and said third output terminal, and

said quantizer is configured to convert a voltage of said third output terminal to a digital value at predetermined resolution and output the digital value, and

the first digital signal is defined as a bit sequence indicative of the digital value outputted from said quantizer, and

said D/A converter is configured to, in response to receipt of the digital value from said quantizer, apply a voltage corresponding to the received digital value to said third inverting input terminal, and

said correction D/A converter is configured to provide the correction analog signal to said third non-inverting input terminal.

12. An object detection device as set forth in claim 11, wherein

the predetermined resolution is one bit, and

said digital filter includes a first filter unit configured to convert the first digital signal to a third digital signal represented by multiple bits and output the third digital signal, and a second filter unit configured to create the second digital signal by subjecting the third digital signal to an arithmetic process, and

said adjustment unit is configured to create the correction digital signal by subjecting the third digital signal to an arithmetic process.

13. An object detection device as set forth in claim 10, wherein

said correction circuit includes a noise shaper configured to subject the correction digital signal to a noise shaping process to create a noise-shaped correction digital signal and output the noise-shaped correction digital signal to said correction D/A converter, and

said correction D/A converter is configured to convert the noise-shaped correction digital signal to the correction analog signal.

14. An object detection device as set forth in claim 10 further comprising an internal power source having a predetermined voltage,

wherein said correction D/A converter is configured to create the correction analog signal by use of the predetermined voltage of said internal power source, and

said operational amplifier has a non-inverting input terminal, an inverting input terminal, and an output terminal, and

said capacitive element is interposed between said non-inverting input terminal and said output terminal, and

said inverting input terminal is connected to said pyroelectric element, and

said internal power source is electrically connected to said non-inverting input terminal such that a reference voltage is applied to said non-inverting input terminal.

15. An object detection device as set forth in claim 10, wherein

said A/D conversion circuit includes an integrator, a quantizer, and a D/A converter, and

said integrator includes a third operational amplifier and a third capacitive element, and

said third operational amplifier has a third inverting input terminal connected to said I/V conversion circuit to receive the voltage signal, a third non-inverting input terminal receiving a reference voltage, and a third output terminal, and

said third capacitive element is interposed between said third inverting input terminal and said third output terminal, and

said quantizer is configured to convert a voltage of said third output terminal to a digital value at predetermined resolution and output the digital value, and

the first digital signal is defined as a bit sequence indicative of the digital value outputted from said quantizer, and

said D/A converter is configured to, in response to receipt of the digital value from said quantizer, apply a voltage corresponding to the received digital value to said third inverting input terminal, and

said correction D/A converter is configured to provide the correction analog signal to said third inverting input terminal.

16. An object detection device as set forth in claim 1, wherein

said A/D conversion circuit is configured to convert the voltage signal to the first digital signal based on Δ

E conversion.

17. An object detection device as set forth in claim 1, wherein

said digital filter is configured to output the digital value indicative of the second digital signal in a serial method.

18. An object detection device as set forth in claim 17, wherein

the serial method is a BMC method.