Moving body system

• US 10,171,796 B2
• Filed: 12/30/2015
• Issued: 01/01/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 01/09/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Inventors: Sekiguchi, Hiroyoshi, Watanabe, Eita
• Primary Examiner(s): Findley, Christopher G
• Application Number:
  US14/983,881
• Publication Number:
  US 20160205384A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,098 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 11/04 Mounting of cameras operative during drive; Arrangement of controls thereof relative to the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/0088 Adaptive recalibration
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2420/403 Image sensing, e.g. optical camera
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2510/205 Steering speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2540/18 Steering angle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/08 Active safety systems predicting or avoiding probable or impending collision or attempting to minimise its consequences
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/56 exterior to a vehicle by using sensors mounted on the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/166 for active traffic, e.g. moving vehicles, pedestrians, bikes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/204 using stereoscopic image cameras stereoscopic photography G03B35/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/225 using parallax barriers
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/239 using two 2D image sensors having a relative position equal to or related to the interocular distance H04N13/243 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/282 for generating image signals corresponding to three or more geometrical viewpoints, e.g. multi-view systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/296 Synchronisation thereof; Control thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2013/0081 Depth or disparity estimation from stereoscopic image signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/62 Control of parameters via user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/69 Control of means for changing angle of the field of view, e.g. optical zoom objectives or electronic zooming

Abstract

A moving body system includes an imaging device attachable to a moving body, a visual line direction changing mechanism configured to change a visual line direction of the imaging device and a control unit configured to change the visual line direction of the imaging device in accordance with changing of a movement direction of the moving body.

Claims

1. A moving body system comprising:

an imaging device attachable to a moving body including at least one wheel and a steering device which is attached to the moving body and is operated to control a movement direction of the moving body in accordance with steering operation of the steering device;

a visual line direction changing mechanism configured to change a visual line direction of the imaging device; and

a control unit configured to determine at least one steering operation information selected from a group consisting of a steering operation angle of the steering device attached to the moving body, a steering operation speed of the steering device attached to the moving body, and an angle of inclination of the wheel of the moving body, and detect, based on said at least one steering operation information determined by the control unit, changing of the movement direction of the moving body, and change the visual line direction of the imaging device in accordance with the changing of the movement direction of the moving body, detected based on said at least one steering operation information.

2. The moving body system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the control unit is configured to control the visual line direction of the imaging device such that an angle made by the visual line direction of the imaging device and the movement direction of the moving body is changed in accordance with a changing amount of the movement direction of the moving body.

3. The moving body system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the control unit is configured to control the visual line direction of the imaging device such that the larger a changing amount of the movement direction of the moving body becomes, the larger an angle made by the visual line direction of the imaging device and the movement direction of the moving body becomes.

4. The moving body system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the moving body is a vehicle.

5. The moving body system as claimed in claim 4, wherein the control unit is configured to control the visual line direction of the imaging device such that the visual line direction of the imaging device is angled with respect to the movement direction of the vehicle inside of a turning direction of the vehicle.

6. The moving body system as claimed in claim 4, wherein the control unit is configured to detect a changing amount of the movement direction of the moving body based on at least one of a steering operation angle of the vehicle, an angle of inclination of a wheel of the vehicle, and a changing of images captured by the imaging device.

7. The moving body system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the control unit is configured to change at least one of a frame rate of the imaging device and a recognition process rate of the imaging device in accordance with the changing of the movement direction of the moving body.

8. The moving body system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the control unit is configured to make at least one of the frame rate of the imaging device and the recognition process rate of the imaging device higher in accordance with the changing of the movement direction of the moving body.

9. The moving body system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the control unit is configured to return the at least one of the frame rate of the imaging device and the recognition process rate of the imaging device which is changed to its original rate in accordance with an event in which the movement direction of the moving body returns to a straight direction after the visual line direction of the imaging device has been changed.

10. The moving body system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the control unit is configured to make the frame rate of the imaging device higher in a case in which an object exists in a predetermined distance from the moving body than the frame rate of the imaging device in a case in which the object does not exist in the predetermined distance from the moving body.

11. The moving body system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the imaging device is a stereo camera.

12. A moving body system comprising:

an imaging device attachable to a moving body including at least one wheel and a steering device which is attached to the moving body and is operated to control a movement direction of the moving body in accordance with steering operation of the steering device, the imaging device having been configured to capture a predetermined area with respect to, and external to, the moving body;

a predetermined area changing mechanism configured to move the imaging device with respect to the moving body in order to change the predetermined area with respect to the moving body in a state in which the imaging device is attached to the moving body; and

a control unit configured to determine at least one steering operation information selected from a group consisting of a steering operation angle of the steering device attached to the moving body, a steering operation speed of the steering device attached to the moving body, and an angle of inclination of the wheel of the moving body, and detect, based on said at least one steering operation information determined by the control unit, changing of the movement direction of the moving body, and control the predetermined area changing mechanism in order to change the predetermined area with respect to the moving body in accordance with the changing of the movement direction of the moving body, detected based on said at least one steering operation information.

13. The moving body system as claimed in claim 12, wherein the control unit is configured to control the predetermined area changing mechanism in order to change the predetermined area with respect to the moving body in accordance with an operation of a movement direction changing mechanism which is configured to change the movement direction of the moving body.

14. The moving body system as claimed in claim 12, wherein in accordance with changing of the movement direction of the moving body by a first angle to one side, the control unit is configured to control the predetermined area changing mechanism in order to change the predetermined area with respect to the moving body by a second angle to the one side, the second angle being larger than the first angle.

15. The moving body system as claimed in claim 14, wherein in a case in which a changing angle of the movement direction of the moving body is less than the first angle, the control unit is configured to control the predetermined area changing mechanism in order not to change the predetermined area with respect to the moving body.

16. The moving body system as claimed in claim 14, wherein when the control unit determines the distance between the moving body and the object in the changed predetermined area to be less than a predetermined distance, the control unit performs at least one of:

(i) outputs warning information; and

(ii) automatically brings the moving body to a stop.

17. A moving body system comprising:

an imaging device attachable to a moving body including at least one wheel and a steering device which is attached to the moving body and is operated to control a movement direction of the moving body in accordance with steering operation of the steering device, the imaging device having been configured to capture a predetermined area with respect to, and external to, the moving body and determine a distance between the moving body and an object in the predetermined area;

a predetermined area changing mechanism configured to move the imaging device with respect to the moving body in order to change the predetermined area with respect to the moving body in a state in which the imaging device is attached to the moving body; and

a control unit configured to determine at least one steering operation information selected from a group consisting of a steering operation angle of the steering device attached to the moving body, a steering operation speed of the steering device attached to the moving body, and an angle of inclination of the wheel of the moving body, and detect, based on said at least one steering operation information determined by the control unit, changing of the movement direction of the moving body, and control the predetermined area changing mechanism in order to change the predetermined area with respect to the moving body in accordance with the changing of the movement direction of the moving body, detected based on said at least one steering operation information, the imaging device capturing the changed predetermined area and the control unit determining a distance between the moving body and an object in the changed predetermined area.

18. The moving body system as claimed in claim 17,

wherein the moving body is a flight body.

19. The moving body system as claimed in claim 18,

wherein the flight body is configured to be operated by a control stick, and

wherein the control unit is configured to detect the changing of the movement direction of the flight body based on a changing of a control signal of the control stick in order to control the visual line direction of the imaging device.

20. The moving body system as claimed in claim 18,

wherein the flight body is configured to be remotely operated by a radio control device, and

wherein the control unit is configured to control the visual line direction of the imaging device based on at least one of a control signal of the radio control unit and image information captured by the imaging device.