Vehicle surroundings awareness support device

• US 8,964,034 B2
• Filed: 07/28/2010
• Issued: 02/24/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 08/04/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Aisin Seiki Co., Ltd. (Aisin Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Aisin Seiki Co., Ltd. (Aisin Corp.)
• Inventors: Nagamine, Noboru, Watanabe, Kazuya, Matsuba, Tomoyuki, Kadowaki, Jun, Mori, Toshihiro, Ooshita, Yuuichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Czekaj, Dave
• Assistant Examiner(s): PHAM, NAM D
• Application Number:
  US13/388,849
• Publication Number:
  US 20120133769A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,672 Days
• US Class Current: 348/148
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 1/00 Optical viewing arrangements; Real-time viewing arrangements for drivers or passengers using optical image capturing systems, e.g. cameras or video systems specially adapted for use in or on vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/305 merging camera image with lines or icons
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/307 virtually distinguishing relevant parts of a scene from the background of the scene
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/8033 for pedestrian protection
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/806 for aiding parking
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/8086 for vehicle path indication
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 15/0275 by overlaying a vehicle path based on present steering angle over an image without processing that image
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30261 Obstacle
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/246 using feature-based methods, e.g. the tracking of corners or segments
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/166 for active traffic, e.g. moving vehicles, pedestrians, bikes
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/168 Driving aids for parking, e.g. acoustic or visual feedback on parking space

Abstract

Provided is a vehicle surroundings awareness support device capable of providing a prompt for a driver to intuitively direct their attention, without the driver feeling hassled. Captured images comprising a plurality of frames taken sequentially by an onboard camera for imaging the surroundings of the vehicle are received; an optical flow is computed on the basis of feature points contained in the plurality of frames imaged at different times; moving objects in the surroundings of the vehicle are detected on the basis of the optical flow; and a display for showing movement trajectories for the moving objects is superimposed on the captured images on the basis of the optical flow.

Claims

1. A vehicle surroundings awareness support device comprising:

an image reception unit that receives captured images comprising a plurality of frames taken sequentially by an onboard camera for imaging the surroundings of a vehicle;

an optical flow computation unit that computes an optical flow on the basis of feature points contained in the plurality of frames imaged at different times;

a moving object detection unit that detects a moving object in the surroundings of the vehicle on the basis of the optical flow; and

a superimposing unit that superimposes a display for showing a movement trajectory for the moving object, in a direction opposite to a moving direction of the moving object, onto the captured images, on the basis of the optical flow, and further comprising;

an afterimage generation unit that sets an image region containing at least some pixels constituting the moving object as a designated image region in a designated frame, which is one of the frames constituting the captured images, and that generates an afterimage using the pixels of the designated image region,

wherein;

the superimposing unit imparts the frames following the designated frame with predetermined weightings and superimposes the afterimage thereon, the predetermined weightings being progressively decreased as the afterimage is moved away from the moving object.

2. The vehicle surroundings awareness support device according to claim 1, wherein:

the superimposing unit superimposes a visualized form of the optical flow onto the captured images.

3. The vehicle surroundings awareness support device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a parking target setting unit that sets a parking target for parking the vehicle,

wherein;

the moving object detection unit detects the moving object on the basis of the optical flow directed toward at least one of either the parking target or a planned course of the vehicle to the parking target; and

the superimposing unit superimposes a display for indicating the movement trajectory of the moving object onto the captured image.

4. The vehicle surroundings awareness support device according to claim 1, wherein:

the moving object detection unit detects the moving object on the basis of the optical flow directed toward an expected course, the course being set according to the positional relationship with the vehicle; and

the superimposing unit superimposes a display for indicating the movement trajectory of the moving object onto the captured image.