Headlamp light distribution control device

• US 8,884,522 B2
• Filed: 07/24/2012
• Issued: 11/11/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/28/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Imaeda, Koji
• Primary Examiner(s): Vo, Tuyet
• Assistant Examiner(s): LUONG, HENRY T
• Application Number:
  US13/556,519
• Publication Number:
  US 20130026916A1
• Time in Patent Office: 840 Days
• Field of Search: 315/82, 362/460, 362/464, 362/465, 362/466
• US Class Current: 315/82
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/143 combined with another condition, e.g. using vehicle recognition from camera images or activation of wipers
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2300/056 Special anti-blinding beams, e.g. a standard beam is chopped or moved in order not to blind
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2300/41 preceding vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2300/42 oncoming vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/48 by mapping characteristic values of the pattern into a parameter space, e.g. Hough transformation
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/56 relating to colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/584 of vehicle lights or traffic lights

Abstract

An extraction unit extracts a forward vehicle from an acquired image of the forward area image. A judgment unit extracts a lamp of the forward vehicle from the image of the extracted forward vehicle if a distance to the forward vehicle is less than a predetermined value, and judges whether the extracted lamp is actually two lamps or a single lamp. A control unit controls an irradiation direction of a headlamp such that a first shielded area is set in an irradiation area to prevent an area including the lamp of the forward vehicle from being irradiated if judged that the extracted lamp is actually two lamps, and such that a second shielded area is set in the irradiation area to have a margin in right and left directions larger than the first shielded area if judged that the extracted lamp is really only a single lamp.

Claims

1. A headlamp light distribution control device for a vehicle, the headlamp light distribution control device comprising:

an image acquisition unit configured to acquire an image of a forward area of an own vehicle;

an extraction unit configured to extract a forward vehicle from the image of the forward area acquired by the image acquisition unit;

a distance acquisition unit configured to acquire a distance from the own vehicle to the forward vehicle;

a judgment unit configured to

extract a lamp configured by a pair of lamps mounted in the forward vehicle from the image of the forward vehicle extracted by the extraction unit if the distance from the own vehicle to the forward vehicle acquired by the distance acquisition unit is less than a predetermined value, and

judge whether the extracted lamp is in a both lamps lit state where both of the pair of lamps are lit or in a single lamp lit state where only one of the pair of lamps is lit; and

a control unit configured to

set a shielded area in an irradiation area of a headlamp of the own vehicle so as to prevent an area including the lamp of the forward vehicle from being irradiated if the judgment unit judges that the extracted lamp is in the both lamps lit state, and

set a shielded area in the irradiation area of the headlamp of own vehicle so as to have a margin in right and left directions larger than the shielded area set upon the both lamps lit state if the judgment unit judges that the extracted lamp is in the single lamp lit state.

2. The headlamp light distribution control device according to claim 1, wherein

the judgment unit is configured to

calculate a distance between the two lamps of the extracted lamp;

judge that the extracted lamp is in the single lamp lit state if the distance is less than a predetermined value, and

judge that the extracted lamp is in the both lamps lit state if the distance is equal to or more than the predetermined value.

3. The headlamp light distribution control device according to claim 1, wherein

the control unit is configured to change the margin in right and left directions to be larger, as the distance from the own vehicle to the forward vehicle acquired by the distance acquisition unit is smaller.

4. The headlamp light distribution control device according to claim 2, wherein

the control unit is configured to change the margin in right and left directions to be larger, as the distance from the own vehicle to the forward vehicle acquired by the distance acquisition unit is smaller.