Distance measuring and monitoring device equipped automobile reverse radar

• US 6,542,085 B1
• Filed: 10/04/2001
• Issued: 04/01/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 10/04/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Whetron Industrial Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Whetron Industrial Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Yang, Wu-Chung
• Primary Examiner(s): Wu, Daniel J.
• Application Number:
  US09/969,592
• Publication Number:
  US 20030067383A1
• Time in Patent Office: 544 Days
• Field of Search: 340/435, 340/436, 340/937, 340/903, 340/904, 701/301, 367/99, 367/108
• US Class Current: 340/903
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/86 Combinations of sonar systems with lidar systems; Combinations of sonar systems with systems not using wave reflection
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/87 Combinations of sonar systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9317 Driving backwards

Abstract

A distance measuring and monitoring device equipped automobile reverse radar comprises: a photocoupler camera with a wide-angle lens installed at an automobile rear end for taking pictures of possible obstacles behind the automobile body; a distance measuring inductor for calculation of lateral distance between two lateral corners of the automobile body and an obstacle; and a power supply for supplying power to the photocoupler camera, the distance measuring inductor, and the display. The image of the obstacle is mirror-image processed, then forwarded to an image synthesizer for image synthesization, and transferred to a video processor and shown in a display. A reverse gear signal is the effective signal for triggering the power supply.

Claims

1. A distance measuring and monitoring device equipped automobile reverse radar, comprising:

a photocoupler camera disposed at an automobile'"'"'s rear end for taking pictures behind the automobile with a wide-angle lens;

an ultrasonic distance measuring inductor disposed at the rear end of the automobile'"'"'s bumper between two lateral corners of the automobile body for calculation of the lateral distance between an obstacle and the lateral corners of the automobile body;

a video processor for processing pictures taken by the photocoupler camera, forwarding the processed pictures to a video synthesizer for synthesization with said lateral distance calculated by said distance measuring inductor;

a display disposed inside the automobile for showing the taken pictures and the distance from the obstacle to the lateral corners of the automobile body; and

a power supply connected to said video synthesizer, photocoupler camera, distance measuring inductor and display, and triggered by a gear signal indicative of the reverse state of the gear for providing power to said video synthesizer, photocoupler camera, distance measuring inductor, and display;

wherein the detected distance between the obstacle and the automobile body is processed and shown in digits on said display.

2. The automobile reverse radar according to claim 1, wherein the photocoupler camera and the distance measuring inductor are actuated to transmit the pictures taken and the distance data measured to the video synthesizer for synthesization thereof, the synthesized data being further forwarded to the display, and

wherein the processed pictures of the photocoupler camera are displayed in non-inverse fashion with respect to the obstacle.

3. The automobile reverse radar according to claim 1, wherein the distance measuring inductor generates a train of ultrasonic waves at 40 KHz by means of an oscillation circuit, said distance measuring inductor calculating the distance by multiplying the time elapsed between transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves and the speed of the ultrasonic waves.

4. The automobile reverse radar according to claim 1, wherein the photocoupler camera is a wide-angle lens equipped camera.

5. The automobile reverse radar according to claim 1, wherein the distance measuring inductor provides pictures and distance digits depending on variation of the distance.