Decision enhancement system for a vehicle safety restraint application

• US 6,944,527 B2
• Filed: 11/07/2003
• Issued: 09/13/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 11/07/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Eaton Corp. (Wisconsin) (Eaton Corporation PLC.)
• Original Assignee: Eaton Corp. (Wisconsin) (Eaton Corporation PLC.)
• Inventors: Spryshak, Joseph J., Farmer, Michael E., Montag, Michael, Dell′ Eva, Mark L., Jump, Kevin S., Croft, Daniel M., Prainito, John D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Jeanglaude, Gertrude A.
• Application Number:
  US10/703,345
• Publication Number:
  US 20050102080A1
• Time in Patent Office: 676 Days
• Field of Search: 701/45, 701/46, 180/268, 180/271, 180/272, 280/734, 307/10.1
• US Class Current: 701/45
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/01538 for image processing, e.g. cameras or sensor arrays
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/0154 in combination with seat heating
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/01542 detecting passenger motion
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/20 Analysis of motion motion estimation for coding, decoding, compressing or decompressing digital video signals H04N19/43, H04N19/51
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/70 Determining position or orientation of objects or cameras camera calibration G06T7/80
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/59 inside of a vehicle, e.g. relating to seat occupancy, driver state or inner lighting conditions
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/10 Human or animal bodies, e.g. vehicle occupants or pedestrians; Body parts, e.g. hands

Abstract

The disclosure describes systems and methods that pertain to interactions between a vehicle and an occupant within the vehicle. More specifically, various systems and methods for enhancing the decisions of automated vehicle applications (collectively “decision enhancement system”) are disclosed. In a safety restraint embodiment, a sensor is used to capture various sensor readings. Sensor readings are typically in the form of images. Occupant information, such as location attributes, motion attributes, and occupant category attributes can be obtained from the sensor readings. Such information can then used by the system to enhance the decisions made by various automated applications.

Claims

1. A decision enhancement system for a safety restraint deployment mechanism in a vehicle, comprising:

an image capture subsystem, providing for the capture of a plurality of images;

an image processing subsystem, including a deployment module and a disablement module;

wherein said deployment module provides for identifying a current condition from a plurality of pre-defined occupant conditions, wherein said current condition is identified using a plurality of occupant attributes obtained from at least one image from said plurality of images, wherein said deployment module provides for setting a deployment flag from said current condition; and

wherein said disablement module provides for setting a disablement flag from at least one said occupant attribute obtained from at least one said image.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising a communication subsystem providing for communicating said deployment flag and said disablement flag to the safety restraint deployment mechanism.

3. The system of claim 1, further comprising a power subsystem providing for a reserve power source for said decision enhancement system that does not provide power to any other application on the vehicle.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein said image capture subsystem includes a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) imager configured for providing at least two of:

(a) an on-chip exposure control;

(b) a pseudo-logarithmic response; and

(c) a histogram equalization.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein said plurality of images are captured sequentially at a rate that is slower than about 100 Hz.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein said image capture subsystem includes a lens for capturing said plurality of images, and wherein said lens comprises at least one of:

(a) a horizontal field of view between about 120 and 140 degrees; and

(b) a vertical field of view between about 90 and 10 degrees.

7. The system of claim 1, said image capture subsystem further comprising an infrared illuminator.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein said infrared illuminator operates at a wavelength between about 860 nm and 900 nm.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein said infrared illuminator includes a diffusing material to more evenly distribute the light generated by said plurality of light emitting diodes (LEDs).

10. The system of claim 1, further comprising a digital signal processor (DSP) and a local memory unit, wherein said image processing subsystem invokes said DSP and said local memory unit for performing a plurality of image processing heuristics, including at least of two:

(a) a segmentation heuristic;

(b) a classification heuristic;

(c) a prediction heuristic; and

(d) a tracking heuristic.

11. The system of claim 10, further comprising microcontroller unit (MCU), wherein said local memory unit is a flash memory unit, wherein said plurality of image processing heuristics are stored in said flash memory unit before being loaded by said MCU into said DSP during an initialization period.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein at least one said image processing heuristic is modified after being installed in a vehicle.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the image processing subsystem includes a DSP coupled with an external memory unit to access a plurality of intermediate results and a plurality of reference images.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein said DSP is a pipelined dual-processor internal dual-port random access memory (RAM) DSP and wherein said external memory unit is static random access memory (SRAM).

15. The system of claim 1, wherein said image capture subsystem includes a video camera for capturing said plurality of images, and wherein said video camera is used to capture said images for said deployment module and said disablement module.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein said disablement module is not invoked unless said deployment module sets said deployment flag to a value of yes.

17. The system of claim 1, wherein said disablement module sets at least one of:

(a) an at-risk-zone disablement flag;

(b) a impact assessment disablement flag; and

(c) a occupant-type disablement flag; and

wherein said disablement flag is set to a value of yes if at least one of;

(a) said at-risk-zone disablement flag;

(b) said impact assessment disablement flag; and

(c) said occupant type disablement flag is set to a value of yes.

18. The system of claim 1, wherein said communication subsystem transmits an emergency event notification to a receiver outside of the vehicle.

19. The system of claim 1, wherein said sensor includes a high-speed mode and a low speed mode, wherein said high speed mode does not exceed about 45 images per second and wherein said low speed mode does not exceed about 10 images per second.

20. The system of claim 1, wherein said image processing subsystem includes a plurality of segmentation heuristics, and wherein one or more said segmentation heuristics are selectively identified on the basis of a lighting condition no more than about 10 seconds before the time in which the one or more said segmentation heuristics are invoked.

21. An airbag deployment system for an vehicle, comprising:

an imager component, said imager component including a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) imager and a digital signal processor (DSP) for said CMOS imager;

an analysis component, said analysis component including a microcontroller unit, wherein said analysis component is configured to set a deployment flag and a disablement flag; and

a deployment component providing for the activating of an airbag when said deployment flag comprises a yes value and when said disablement flag comprises a no value.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein said CMOS imager provides for an on-chip exposure control, a pseudo-logic response, and a histogram equalization.

23. The system of claim 21, wherein said analysis component comprises a pipelined dual-processor DSP with an internal dual-port RAM unit that is coupled to an external SRAM unit.

24. The system of claim 21, further comprising an infrared illuminator operating at a wavelength between approximately 850 nm and 910 nm.

25. The system of claim 21, wherein said deployment flag is set by a predicted occupant attribute generated by a tracking and predicting heuristic.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein said tracking and predicting heuristic is a multiple-model and probability-weighted tracking and predicting heuristic.

27. The system of claim 26, wherein said multiple-model and probability-weighted tracking an predicting heuristic includes a plurality of Kalman filters.

28. The system of claim 21, wherein said disablement flag is set by a disablement module performing a plurality of heuristics, said plurality of heuristics including at least two of:

(a) an impact assessment heuristic;

(b) an occupant type heuristic; and

(c) an at-risk-zone heuristic.

29. A method for constructing a decision enhancement device for use with a safety restraint application in a vehicle, the method comprising:

configuring an imager component to communicate with an analysis component;

programming a plurality of heuristics, including at least one deployment heuristic and at least one disablement heuristic into the analysis component; and

loading at least one reference image into the analysis component for use by at least one heuristic.

30. The method of claim 29, further comprising fixing the imager component and the analysis component within a casing adapted for installation in a vehicle.

31. The method of claim 30, further comprising fixing an infrared illuminator to the casing.

32. The method of claim 29, further comprising adapting a lens for inclusion within the imager component, the lens including a field of view that includes a horizontal field of view between about 125 and 135 degrees, and a vertical field of view between about 95 and 105 degrees.