Rear monitoring system

• US 6,360,170 B1
• Filed: 02/23/2000
• Issued: 03/19/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 03/12/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Yazaki Corporation
• Original Assignee: Yazaki Corporation
• Inventors: Ishikawa, Naoto, Okamoto, Keiki, Fujinami, Kazutomo
• Primary Examiner(s): Chin, Gary
• Application Number:
  US09/511,500
• Time in Patent Office: 755 Days
• Field of Search: 701/96, 701/300, 701/301, 342/455, 340/435, 340/436, 340/901, 340/903, 348/142, 348/148, 348/149
• US Class Current: 701/300
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0253 extracting relative motion information from a plurality of images taken successively, e.g. visual odometry, optical flow determining position or orientation from images G06T7/70
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0278 using satellite positioning signals, e.g. GPS

Abstract

In a rear monitoring system for a vehicle, the information on the road on which one'"'"'s own vehicle has run is acquired. On the basis of the information thus acquired, the white lines on a rear road image which distinguish one'"'"'s own lane from both adjacent lanes are estimated. Using the white lines thus estimated, it is decided whether another detected vehicle is located on one'"'"'s own lane or adjacent lanes.

Claims

1. A rear monitoring system for a vehicle for monitoring a relationship between one'"'"'s own vehicle and another vehicle comprising:

image pick-up means attached to said one'"'"'s own vehicle for picking up a rear road behind said one'"'"'s own vehicle to acquire a rear road image;

detection means for detecting said another vehicle on the basis of the rear road image acquired by the image pick-up means;

information acquisition means for acquiring information on a road on which said one'"'"'s own vehicle has run;

white-line estimating means for estimating white lines on the rear road image which distinguish one'"'"'s own lane from both adjacent lanes on the basis of the information acquired by said information acquisition means, wherein using the white lines thus estimated, it is decided whether said another detected vehicle is located on said one'"'"'s own lane or the adjacent lanes.

2. A rear monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein said information acquisition means comprises:

front image pick-up means attached to said one'"'"'s own vehicle for picking up a front road ahead of said one'"'"'s own vehicle to acquire said rear road image; and

white-line information acquisition means for successively acquiring information on white lines which distinguish said one'"'"'s own lane from said both adjacent lanes on the basis of the front road image acquired by said front image pick-up means; and

said white line estimating means estimates white lines on the rear road image which distinguish said one'"'"'s own lane from said both adjacent lanes on the basis of the information acquired by said white-line information acquisition mean.

3. A rear monitoring system according to claim 2, wherein said front image pick-up means and said white-line information acquisition means are those originally installed in the system.

4. A rear monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein said information acquisition means comprises position information acquisition means for acquiring vehicle position information indicative of a position coordinate of a vehicle at a prescribed period when the vehicle is running on said one'"'"'s own lane, said position information varying according to a helm angle and running speed of the vehicle, and

said white-line estimating means estimates white lines on the rear road image which distinguish said one'"'"'s own lane from said both adjacent lanes on the basis of the information acquired by said position information acquisition means.

5. A rear monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein said information acquisition means and white line estimating means are replaced by

white-line retrieval region setting means for setting a retrieval region within which white lines for distinguishing said one'"'"'s own lane from said both adjacent lanes are to be retrieved on the rear road image picked up by said image pick-up means;

and

white-line detection means for retrieving said retrieval region to detect the white lines, wherein using the white lines thus detected, it is decided whether another detected vehicle is located on said one'"'"'s own lane or the adjacent lanes.

6. A rear monitoring system for a vehicle according to claim 5, wherein said retrieval region is set using white-line information acquired on the basis of a front road image taken by a front image pick-up means originally installed in said rear monitoring device installed originally.

7. A rear monitoring system for a vehicle for monitoring a relationship between one'"'"'s own vehicle and another vehicle comprising:

image pick-up means attached to said one'"'"'s own vehicle for picking up a rear road behind said one'"'"'s own vehicle to acquire a rear road image;

detection means for detecting said another vehicle on the basis of the rear road image acquired by the image pick-up means;

map storage means for storing road information inclusive of a road shape;

information acquisition means for acquiring information of a present location of said one'"'"'s own vehicle;

white-line estimating means for reading the road information behind the present location of said one'"'"'s own vehicle acquired by said information acquisition means and estimating white lines on the rear road image which distinguish one'"'"'s own lane from both adjacent lanes on the basis of the road information thus read, wherein using the white lines thus estimated, it is decided whether another detected vehicle is located on said one'"'"'s own lane or the adjacent lanes.

8. A rear monitoring system for a vehicle according to claim 7, wherein said map storage means and said information acquisition means are those of a GPS navigation device originally installed to inform a driver of the present location of said one'"'"'s own vehicle on a map on a display.

9. A rear monitoring system for a vehicle for monitoring a relationship between one'"'"'s own vehicle and another following vehicle using an optical displacement comprising:

image pick-up means attached to said one'"'"'s own vehicle for picking up a rear road behind said one'"'"'s own vehicle to acquire rear road images at a prescribed period;

optical-displacement detection means for detecting optical displacements generated from another vehicle on the basis of two successive road images acquired by the image pick-up means;

information acquisition means for acquiring information on a road on which said one'"'"'s own vehicle has run;

white-line estimating means for estimating white lines on the rear road images which distinguish one'"'"'s own lane from both adjacent lanes on the basis of the information acquired by said information acquisition means, wherein using the white lines thus estimated, it is decided whether said another vehicle generating the detected optical displacements is located on said one'"'"'s own lane or the adjacent lanes.

10. A rear monitoring system for a vehicle for monitoring a relationship between one'"'"'s own vehicle and another following vehicle using an optical displacement comprising:

image pick-up means attached to said one'"'"'s own vehicle for picking up a rear road behind said one'"'"'s own vehicle to acquire rear road images at a prescribed period;

optical-displacement detection means for detecting the optical displacements generated from another vehicle on the basis of two successive road images acquired by the image pick-up means;

map storage means for storing road information inclusive of a road shape;

information acquisition means for acquiring information of a present location of said one'"'"'s own vehicle,

white-line estimating means for reading the road information behind the present location of said one'"'"'s own vehicle on the basis of the information acquired by said information acquisition means and estimating white lines on the rear road images which distinguish one'"'"'s own lane from both adjacent lanes on the basis of the road information thus read, wherein using the white lines thus estimated, it is decided whether said another vehicle generating the detected optical displacements is located on said one'"'"'s own lane or the adjacent lanes.