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Safety apparatus against automobile crash

  • US 7,134,688 B2
  • Filed: 07/15/2003
  • Issued: 11/14/2006
  • Est. Priority Date: 07/17/2002
  • Status: Expired due to Fees
First Claim
Patent Images

1. A safety apparatus for automobile crash, comprising:

  • at least one imaging means for repeatedly picking up a passenger'"'"'s head image including a passenger on a seat;

    extracting means for extracting passenger'"'"'s information on the basis of the passenger'"'"'s head image;

    safety means for protecting said passenger from said automobile crash; and

    controlling means for controlling said safety means on the basis of said passenger'"'"'s information,wherein said extracting means;

    stores reference images similar to head outlines, a part of which is a part of an ellipse;

    detects a head ellipse from the passenger'"'"'s head image outputted from said imaging means at a first time;

    stores the detected head ellipse of the first time in a form of parameters defining the head ellipse;

    judges whether the head ellipse of the first time stored in the form of the parameters is almost the same as one of said reference images;

    decides the passenger'"'"'s information responsive to one of the reference images when the head ellipse of the first time is almost the same as the one of the reference images;

    outputs said decided passenger'"'"'s information of the first time to the safety means;

    stores the detected head ellipse as a reference image;

    detects a head ellipse from the passenger'"'"'s head image outputted from said imaging means at a second time coming after the first time only in a region including the head ellipse detected at the first time;

    stores the detected head ellipse of the second time in a form of parameters defining the head ellipse;

    judges whether the head ellipse of the second time stored in the form of the parameters is almost the same as one of said reference images;

    when the head ellipse of the second time differs from any of the reference images, detects a head ellipse from the passenger'"'"'s head image at a third time coming after the second time in a whole of a two-dimensional image area;

    stores the detected head ellipse of the third time in the form of the parameters;

    judges whether the head ellipse of the third time is almost the same as one of said reference images;

    decides the passenger'"'"'s information responsive to one of the reference images when the head ellipse of the third time is almost the same as the one of the reference images; and

    outputs the decided passenger'"'"'s information of the third time to the safety means.

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