Device and method for detection of an object or a person in the interior of a motor vehicle

• US 7,403,635 B2
• Filed: 09/04/2003
• Issued: 07/22/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/11/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: VDO Automotive AG (Continental AG)
• Inventors: Belau, Horst, Köhler, Thorsten, Ertl, Ludwig
• Primary Examiner(s): Lu; Tom Y.
• Application Number:
  US10/527,250
• Publication Number:
  US 20060120565A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,783 Days
• Field of Search: 382/103, 382/104, 382/107
• US Class Current: 382/103
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/01538 for image processing, e.g. cameras or sensor arrays
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/01542 detecting passenger motion

Abstract

The invention relates to a device (1) and method for detection of an object or a person in the interior of a motor vehicle. The device (1) is operated by means of an analytical unit (3), such that the device (1), for detecting an object or a person in the interior of a motor vehicle, comprising a image recording unit (2) and an analytical unit (3) for the image data transmitted from the image recording unit (3), is operated in a first operating mode while an acceleration threshold value is not determined to be exceeded by the analytical unit (3) and in a second operation mode while the acceleration threshold value is determined to be exceeded by the analytical unit (3).

Claims

1. A method of detecting an object or a person in the interior of a motor vehicle, which comprises:

providing an image recording unit for detecting an object or a person in the interior of the motor vehicle and an analytical unit for image data transmitted from the image recording unit;

operating the image recording unit and the analytical unit;

in a first operating mode implementing a first image processing algorithm when said analytical unit determines that an acceleration threshold value is not exceeded; and

in a second operating mode implementing a second image processing algorithm that is faster than the first image processing algorithm when said analytical unit determines that the acceleration threshold value is exceeded, the second operating mode taking over on a basis of positional data of a last measurement obtained in the first operating mode.

2. The method according to claim 1, which comprises polling a value of a motor vehicle acceleration with the analytical unit with a cycle time of approximately 2 ms.

3. The method according to claim 1, which comprises polling a value of a motor vehicle acceleration with the analytical unit with a cycle time of approximately 1 ms.

4. The method according to claim 1, which comprises setting the acceleration threshold value to approximately 2 m/s².

5. The method according to claim 1, which comprises estimating a next position of the object or the person in the second operating mode on a basis of the measured acceleration values by way of a comparison model.

6. The method according to claim 1, which comprises, when the threshold value is no longer exceeded, interrupting a currently running second operating mode and restarting the first operating mode.

7. The method according to claim 1, which comprises, upon exceeding the threshold value, interrupting a currently running first operating mode and starting the second operating mode.

8. A device for detecting an object or a person in an interior of a motor vehicle, comprising:

an image recording unit disposed to detect an object or a person in the interior of the motor vehicle;

an analytical unit configured to receive data from said image recording unit; and

the device being configured to be operated;

in a first operating mode implementing a first image processing algorithm while a defined acceleration threshold value is determined not to be exceeded by said analytical unit; and

in a second operating mode implementing a second image processing algorithm that is faster than the first image processing algorithm while the acceleration threshold value is determined to be exceeded by the analytical unit.

9. The device according to claim 8, wherein said analytical unit is configured to activate the second operating mode as soon as a value of a motor vehicle acceleration exceeds the acceleration threshold value.

10. The device according to claim 8, wherein said analytical unit is configured to activate the first operating mode as soon as a value of a motor vehicle acceleration drops below the acceleration threshold value.

11. The device according to claim 8, wherein said analytical unit is configured to reference values for a motor vehicle acceleration from an external airbag control unit.

12. The device according to claim 8, which further comprises an acceleration sensor for determining an acceleration of the motor vehicle.

13. The device according to claim 12, wherein said acceleration sensor forms an integral part of said analytical unit or of said image recording unit.

14. The device according to claim 12, wherein said acceleration sensor is a sensor sensitive for relatively low accelerations.

15. The device according to claim 8, wherein said image recording unit has a more restricted sampling range in the second operating mode than a sampling range in the first operating mode.

16. The device according to claim 8, wherein said analytical unit has a shorter analysis cycle in the second operating mode than an analysis cycle in the first operating mode.

17. The device according to claim 8, wherein said image recording unit is a camera.

18. The device according to claim 8, wherein said image recording unit is a stereoscopic 3D camera.