Imaging system and method with dynamic brightness control
First Claim
1. A method of brightness control for an image sensor, said method comprising:
- receiving image data of an image from said image sensor;
determining pixel intensities in a region of interest comprising a portion of the image including roadway lane marker(s);
estimating the number and intensity of pixels corresponding to the lane marker(s) in said region of interest based on prior knowledge of the lane marker(s);
discarding the pixels corresponding to the lane marker(s) to derive pixels comprising the background portion of the region of interest surrounding the lane marker(s);
detecting the brightness level of said pixels comprising the background portion of the region of interest;
determining an adjusted brightness level of said background portion of the region of interest, wherein the brightness of said lane marker(s) is optimized in relation to said background portion of the region of interest; and
controlling said image sensor to alter said brightness level of said background portion of the region of interest to said adjusted brightness level.
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Abstract
An imaging system with brightness control includes an image capture subsystem and an image control block and is adapted for use in conjunction with an image processing application. The image capture subsystem receives an image and converts this image into digital image data. The digital signal is then stored in a video buffer for access by the image control block. The image control block provides brightness control of an image sensor in the image control subsystem to optimize the brightness of the desired area of interest in the image relative to the background. In one application, the imaging system is used in conjunction with a lane tracking system image processing application to detect roadway lane markings from a moving vehicle.
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Citations
13 Claims
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1. A method of brightness control for an image sensor, said method comprising:
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receiving image data of an image from said image sensor;
determining pixel intensities in a region of interest comprising a portion of the image including roadway lane marker(s);
estimating the number and intensity of pixels corresponding to the lane marker(s) in said region of interest based on prior knowledge of the lane marker(s);
discarding the pixels corresponding to the lane marker(s) to derive pixels comprising the background portion of the region of interest surrounding the lane marker(s);
detecting the brightness level of said pixels comprising the background portion of the region of interest;
determining an adjusted brightness level of said background portion of the region of interest, wherein the brightness of said lane marker(s) is optimized in relation to said background portion of the region of interest; and
controlling said image sensor to alter said brightness level of said background portion of the region of interest to said adjusted brightness level. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)
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5. An imaging system with dynamic brightness control, said system comprising:
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an image sensor for providing image data of a scene;
means for automatically determining pixel intensities in a region of interest comprising a portion of the image including roadway lane marker(s);
means for automatically estimating the number and intensity of pixels corresponding to the lane marker(s) from said pixel intensities in the region of interest based on prior knowledge of the lane marker(s);
means for discarding the pixels corresponding to the lane marker(s) to derive pixels comprising the background portion of the region of interest surrounding the lane marker(s);
means for detecting a brightness level of said pixels comprising the background portion of the region of interest surrounding the lane marker(s);
means for determining an adjusted brightness level of said background portion of the region of interest surrounding the lane marker(s), wherein the brightness of said lane markers is optimized in relation to said background portion of the region of interest surrounding the lane marker(s); and
control means, coupled to the image sensor, for controlling the image sensor to alter said brightness level of said background portion of the region of interest surrounding the lane marker(s) to said adjusted brightness level. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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Specification