INTELLIGENT LENS MASKING SYSTEM FOR AN AUTONOMOUS VEHICLE

• US 20170177000A1
• Filed: 12/22/2015
• Published: 06/22/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Uatc, LLC (Uber Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Uber Technologies, Inc.
• Inventors: Meyhofer, Eric, Rice, David
• Granted Patent: US 10,048,696 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/13306 Circuit arrangements or driving methods for the control of single liquid crystal cells G02F1/132, G02F1/133382 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/243 using three or more 2D image sensors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/45 for generating image signals from two or more image sensors being of different type or operating in different modes, e.g. with a CMOS sensor for moving images in combination with a charge-coupled device [CCD] for still images
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/57 Mechanical or electrical details of cameras or camera modules specially adapted for being embedded in other devices

Abstract

An intelligent lens masking system for a camera array of an autonomous vehicle (AV) can include an array interface to receive real-time data from the camera array as the AV travels along a given route, where each camera of the camera array may include a masking layer on its lens. The intelligent lens masking system can dynamically identify, in the real-time data, a number of light sources in the field of view for each respective camera in the camera array. Once the light source(s) for the respective camera is detected, the intelligent lens masking system can dynamically block the lights source(s) for the respective camera by activating a number of pixels of the masking layer.

Claims

1. An intelligent lens masking system for a camera array of an autonomous vehicle (AV) comprising:

an array interface to receive real-time data from the camera array as the AV travels along a given route;

one or more processors; and

one or more memory resources storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the intelligent lens masking system to;

dynamically identify, based on the real-time data, one or more light sources for each respective camera in the camera array, wherein a lens of the respective camera comprises a masking layer; and

dynamically block each of the one or more lights sources for the respective camera by activating a number of pixels of the masking layer.

2. The intelligent lens masking system of claim 1, wherein the executed instructions further cause the intelligent lens masking system to:

track the one or more light sources in a field of view of the respective camera as the AV travels.

3. The intelligent lens masking system of claim 2, wherein the executed instructions further cause the intelligent lens masking system to:

based on tracking the one or more light sources, dynamically activate and deactivate respective pixels of the masking layer to continuously block each of the one or more light sources, as the AV travels, while the one or more light sources remain in the field of view of the respective camera.

4. The intelligent lens masking system of claim 1, wherein the masking layer comprises a liquid crystal display (LCD) layer.

5. The intelligent lens masking system of claim 4, wherein the executed instructions cause the intelligent lens masking system to activate the pixels of the LCD layer by applying a voltage to the pixels.

6. The intelligent lens masking system of claim 4, wherein the LCD layer comprises a transparent passive-matrix LCD layer.

7. The intelligent lens masking system of claim 4, wherein the LCD layer comprises a transparent active-matrix LCD layer.

8. The intelligent lens masking system of claim 1, wherein the camera array comprises a plurality of stereo cameras.

9. The intelligent lens masking system of claim 8, wherein the respective camera is included in the plurality of stereo cameras.

10. The intelligent lens masking system of claim 1, wherein the one or more lights sources correspond to the Sun being in a field of view of the respective camera.

11. The intelligent lens masking system of claim 1, wherein the one or more light sources correspond to one or more of reflected sunlight, one or more streetlights, or one or more headlights from other vehicles.

12. An autonomous vehicle (AV) comprising:

a camera array to continuously detect a situational environment of the AV and generate real-time data indicating the situational environment;

an on-board data processing system to process the real-time data by comparing the real-time data to stored sub-maps that provide detailed surface data of a current route traveled by the AV;

an acceleration, braking, and steering system;

an AV control system to utilize the processed real-time data to operate the acceleration, braking, and steering system along the current route; and

an intelligent lens masking system to;

dynamically identify, based on the real-time data, one or more light sources for each respective camera in the camera array, wherein a lens of the respective camera comprises a masking layer; and

dynamically block each of the one or more lights sources for the respective camera by activating a number of pixels of the masking layer.

13. The AV of claim 12, wherein the intelligent lens masking system tracks the one or more light sources in a field of view of the respective camera as the AV travels along the current route.

14. The AV of claim 13, wherein the intelligent lens masking system dynamically activates and deactivates respective pixels of the masking layer, based on tracking the one or more light sources, to continuously block each of the one or more light sources, as the AV travels along the current route, while the one or more light sources remain in the field of view of the respective camera.

15. The AV of claim 12, wherein the masking layer comprises a liquid crystal display (LCD) layer.

16. The AV of claim 15, wherein the LCD layer comprises one of a transparent passive-matrix LCD layer or a transparent active LCD layer.

17. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of an intelligent lens masking system of an autonomous vehicle (AV), cause the intelligent lens masking system to:

dynamically identify, based on real-time data generated by a camera array of the AV, one or more light sources for each respective camera in the camera array, wherein a lens of the respective camera comprises a masking layer; and

dynamically block each of the one or more lights sources for the respective camera by activating a number of pixels of the masking layer.

18. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 17, wherein the executed instructions further cause the intelligent lens masking system to:

track the one or more light sources in a field of view of the respective camera in the real-time data as the AV travels along the current route.

19. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 18, wherein the executed instructions further cause the intelligent lens masking system to:

dynamically activate and deactivate respective pixels of the masking layer, based on tracking the one or more light sources, to continuously block each of the one or more light sources, as the AV travels along the current route, while the one or more light sources remain in the field of view of the respective camera.

20. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 17, wherein the one or more lights sources correspond to the Sun being in a field of view of the respective camera.