TRACKING OBJECTS IN BOWL-SHAPED IMAGING SYSTEMS

• US 20160371843A1
• Filed: 09/06/2016
• Published: 12/22/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/18/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Scholl, Kay-Ulrich, Natroshvili, Koba
• Granted Patent: US 10,262,394 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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 2300/10 characterised by the type of camera system used
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/30 characterised by the type of image processing
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/303 using joined images, e.g. multiple camera images
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/80 characterised by the intended use of the viewing arrangement
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30252 Vehicle exterior; Vicinity of vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 3/047 Fisheye or wide-angle transformations
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 3/12 Panospheric to cylindrical image transformations
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/536 from perspective effects, e.g. by using vanishing points
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/73 using feature-based methods
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/58 Recognition of moving objects or obstacles, e.g. vehicles or pedestrians; Recognition of traffic objects, e.g. traffic signs, traffic lights or roads
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/698 for achieving an enlarged field of view, e.g. panoramic image capture

Abstract

Technologies for determining a distance of an object from a vehicle include a computing device to identify an object captured in a fisheye image generated by a fisheye camera of the vehicle. The computing device projects a contour of the identified object on a selected virtual plane that is located outside the vehicle and selected from a predefined set of virtual planes based on a location of the identified object relative to the vehicle. The computing device identifies a bottom of the projected contour on the selected virtual plane and determines an intersection point of an imaginary line with a ground plane coincident with a plane on which the vehicle is positioned. The imaginary line passes through each of the identified bottom of the projected contour and the fisheye camera. The computing device determines a location of the identified object relative to the vehicle based on the determined intersection point and the identified bottom of the projected contour.

Claims

1. A computing device for determining a distance of an object from a vehicle, the computing device comprising:

a fisheye camera to capture a fisheye image;

an object projection module to project a contour of an object identified in the fisheye image onto a selected virtual plane that is located outside the vehicle and selected from a predefined set of virtual planes based on a location of the identified object relative to the vehicle; and

a location determination module to determine a location of the identified object relative to the vehicle based on a bottom of the projected contour.

2. The computing device of claim 1, wherein to project the contour of the identified object comprises to select a virtual plane that is nearest the identified object and on which to project the contour of the identified object.

3. The computing device of claim 1, wherein to project the contour of the identified object comprises to:

determine a reference line intersecting the fisheye camera and a location of the identified object; and

project the contour of the identified object to a virtual plane that the reference line intersects.

4. The computing device of claim 1, wherein to determine the location of the identified object relative to the vehicle comprises to (i) determine an intersection point of an imaginary line with a ground plane coincident with a plane on which the vehicle is positioned, wherein the imaginary line passes through each of the identified bottom of the projected contour and the fisheye camera, and (ii) determine the location of the identified object relative to the vehicle based on the determined intersection point and the bottom of the projected contour.

5. The computing device of claim 4, wherein to determine the location of the identified object relative to the vehicle comprises to apply a Kalman filter based on the determined intersection point and the bottom of the projected contour.

6. The computing device of claim 4, wherein the location determination module is further to

determine a bounding box of the projected contour on the virtual plane;

and

identify a middle point of a bottom of the bounding box to identify the bottom of the projected contour.

7. The computing device of claim 6, wherein the intersection point is an intersection point of a center of the fisheye camera with the middle point of the bottom of the bounding box.

8. The computing device of claim 1, wherein each virtual plane of the predefined set of virtual planes is orthogonal to the ground plane.

9. One or more machine-readable storage media comprising a plurality of instructions stored thereon that, when executed a computing device, cause the computing device to:

capture a fisheye image;

project a contour of an object identified in the fisheye image onto a selected virtual plane that is located outside the vehicle and selected from a predefined set of virtual planes based on a location of the identified object relative to the vehicle; and

determine a location of the identified object relative to the vehicle based on a bottom of the projected contour.

10. The one or more machine-readable storage media of claim 9, wherein to project the contour of the identified object comprises to select a virtual plane that is nearest the identified object and on which to project the contour of the identified object.

11. The one or more machine-readable storage media of claim 9, wherein to project the contour of the identified object comprises to:

determine a reference line intersecting the fisheye camera and a location of the identified object; and

project the contour of the identified object to a virtual plane that the reference line intersects.

12. The one or more machine-readable storage media of claim 9, wherein to determine the location of the identified object relative to the vehicle comprises to (i) determine an intersection point of an imaginary line with a ground plane coincident with a plane on which the vehicle is positioned, wherein the imaginary line passes through each of the identified bottom of the projected contour and the fisheye camera, and (ii) determine the location of the identified object relative to the vehicle based on the determined intersection point and the bottom of the projected contour.

13. The one or more machine-readable storage media of claim 12, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed, further cause the computing device to:

determine a bounding box of the projected contour on the virtual plane; and

identify a middle point of a bottom of the bounding box to identify the bottom of the projected contour.

14. The one or more machine-readable storage media of claim 9, wherein each virtual plane of the predefined set of virtual planes is orthogonal to the ground plane.

15. A method for determining a distance of an object from a vehicle by a computing device of the vehicle, the method comprising:

capturing a fisheye image;

projecting a contour of an object identified in the fisheye image onto a selected virtual plane that is located outside the vehicle and selected from a predefined set of virtual planes based on a location of the identified object relative to the vehicle; and

determining a location of the identified object relative to the vehicle based on a bottom of the projected contour.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein projecting the contour of the identified object comprises selecting a virtual plane that is nearest the identified object and on which to project the contour of the identified object.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein projecting the contour of the identified object comprises:

determining a reference line intersecting the fisheye camera and a location of the identified object; and

projecting the contour of the identified object to a virtual plane that the reference line intersects.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein determining the location of the identified object relative to the vehicle comprises (i) determining an intersection point of an imaginary line with a ground plane coincident with a plane on which the vehicle is positioned, wherein the imaginary line passes through each of the identified bottom of the projected contour and the fisheye camera, and (ii) determining the location of the identified object relative to the vehicle based on the determined intersection point and the bottom of the projected contour.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

determining a bounding box of the projected contour on the virtual plane; and

identifying a middle point of a bottom of the bounding box to identify the bottom of the projected contour.

20. The method media of claim 15, wherein each virtual plane of the predefined set of virtual planes is orthogonal to the ground plane.