PROCESSING DEVICE, OBJECT RECOGNITION APPARATUS, DEVICE CONTROL SYSTEM, PROCESSING METHOD, AND COMPUTER-READABLE RECORDING MEDIUM

• US 20180300562A1
• Filed: 06/26/2018
• Published: 10/18/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Shinichi Sumiyoshi
• Inventors: YAMADA, Yuu, Yokota, Soichiro, Takahashi, Sadao, Sumiyoshi, Shinichi
• Granted Patent: US 10,748,014 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/00 General purpose image data processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/10016 Video; Image sequence
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30261 Obstacle
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/00 Image analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/593 from stereo images
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/596 from three or more stereo images
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/20 in augmented reality scenes
• 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: G06V 20/584 of vehicle lights or traffic lights
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/16 Anti-collision systems road vehicle drive control systems for predicting or avoiding probable or impending collision otherwise than by control of a particular sub-unit B60W30/08
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/165 for passive traffic, e.g. including static obstacles, trees

Abstract

According to an embodiment, a processing device includes a generating unit, a detecting unit, and a determining unit. The generating unit is configured to generate two-dimensional distribution information of an object, the two-dimensional distribution information associating between at least a lateral direction distance and a depth direction distance of the object. The detecting unit is configured to detect a continuous area having continuity in a depth direction in the two-dimensional distribution information. The determining unit is configured to determine whether the continuous area represents a detection target.

Claims

1. An processing device, comprising:

a generating unit configured to generate two-dimensional distribution information of an object, the two-dimensional distribution information associating between at least a lateral direction distance and a depth direction distance of the object;

a detecting unit configured to detect a continuous area having continuity in a depth direction in the two-dimensional distribution information.

2. The processing device according to claim 1, wherein

the detecting unit detects, as the continuous area, an area connected in the depth direction in the two-dimensional distribution information.

3. The processing device according to claim 1, comprising:

a labeling unit that assigns a label to plural pieces of information continuous in the depth direction of the two-dimensional distribution information;

a sorting unit that sorts out information continuous in the depth direction over a predetermined threshold or more, from information assigned with the same label; and

an integrating unit that integrates labels of plural pieces of information having a lateral direction range or a depth direction range that is in a predetermined range, into the same label, the plural pieces of information being among the information sorted out.

4. The processing device according to claim 3, wherein

if pieces of information sorted out by the sorting unit and assigned with labels different from each other are in a predetermined range in the depth direction, the integrating unit performs integration by assigning the same label to a piece of information that is between the pieces of information assigned with the labels different from each other.

5. The processing device according to claim 1, wherein

the generating unit generates low resolution two-dimensional distribution information for detection of the detection target, and high resolution two-dimensional distribution information for detection of an object different from the detection target, and

the detecting unit detects, based on the low resolution two-dimensional distribution information, the continuous area.

6. The processing device according to claim 1, wherein

the generating unit generates the two-dimensional distribution information in an orthogonal coordinate system having coordinate axes corresponding to values respectively based on distance and disparity in a horizontal direction,

the detecting unit detects a continuous area having priority in a direction of the axis of the value based on the disparity of the two-dimensional distribution information.

7. The processing device according to claim 1, wherein

the detecting unit detects, as the continuous area, an area where the pixels are continuous in the direction of the axis of the value based on the disparity of the two-dimensional distribution information.

8. The processing device according to claim 7, wherein

if plural sets of the pixels are apart by an interval equal to or less than a predefined allowable number of pixels in the direction of the axis of the value based on the disparity of the two-dimensional distribution information, the detecting unit regards the plural sets of the pixels to be continuous.

9. The processing device according to claim 7, further comprising a determining unit configured to determine that the continuous area represents the detection target if the number of pixels continuous in the continuous area is equal to or greater than a predefined reference, wherein

the determining unit changes the reference according to a position along the direction of the axis of the value based on the disparity of the two-dimensional distribution information.

10. The processing device according to claim 1, further comprising:

an object detecting unit configured to detect an object based on two-dimensional distribution information; and

an area determining unit that determines, based on the continuous area determined by the determining unit to be representing the detection target, an object detection target area to be subjected to detection of an object, the object detection target area being of the two-dimensional distribution information, wherein

the object detecting unit detects an object in the object detection target area determined by the area determining unit.

11. The processing device according to claim 10, wherein

the area determining unit determines, as the object detection target area, an area surrounded by the continuous area determined as the detection target by the determining unit.

12. The processing device according to claim 10, wherein

when the detecting unit detects the continuous area, the generating unit generates the two-dimensional distribution information such that the two-dimensional distribution information has a resolution lower than that in a case where the object detecting unit detects an object.

13. An object recognition apparatus, comprising:

a stereo camera; and

the processing device according to claim 1, wherein.

the generating unit generates the two-dimensional distribution information based on disparity calculated using a plurality of images captured by the stereo camera.

14. A device control system, comprising:

a control unit that controls a device based on the continuous area determined as representing the detection target by the image processing device according to claim 1.

17. Vehicle that includes device control system according to claim 14 and is controlled by the control unit.

15. A processing method, including:

generating two-dimensional distribution information of an object, the two-dimensional distribution information associating between at least a distance in a lateral direction and a distance in a depth direction, of the object;

detecting a continuous area having continuity in the depth direction in the two-dimensional distribution information; and

determining whether or not the continuous area represents a detection target.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium that contains a computer that causes a computer to execute:

generating two-dimensional distribution information of an object, the two-dimensional distribution information associating between at least a distance in a lateral direction and a distance in a depth direction, of the object;

detecting a continuous area having continuity in the depth direction in the two-dimensional distribution information; and

determining whether or not the continuous area represents a detection target.