Control device for a vehicle and method

• US 10,176,385 B2
• Filed: 05/27/2016
• Issued: 01/08/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 05/29/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Conti Temic Microelectronic GmbH (Continental AG)
• Original Assignee: Conti Temic Microelectronic GmbH (Continental AG)
• Inventors: Brunn, Marcus, Fischer, Alexander, Manz, Alexander, Mutschler, Matthias, Schillinger, Patrick
• Primary Examiner(s): Parikh, Dakshesh D
• Assistant Examiner(s): Dhillon, Peet
• Application Number:
  US15/166,878
• Publication Number:
  US 20160347235A1
• Time in Patent Office: 956 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 11/005 for lighting devices, e.g. indicating if lamps are burning or not
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/56 exterior to a vehicle by using sensors mounted on the vehicle

Abstract

A control device and method for a vehicle with a light which is designed to illuminate an area in front of the vehicle, including an image capturing device, which is designed to capture image data for an area in front of the vehicle which is illuminated by the light in a switched-on state, and to output the image data, and including a calculation device, which is coupled to the image capturing device and is designed to calculate from the image data a light color that the light emits, and output it.

Claims

1. A control device for a vehicle with a light, which is designed to illuminate an area in front of the vehicle, comprising:

an image capturing device in the vehicle, to capture image data for an area in front of the vehicle which is illuminated by the light in a switched-on state; and

a calculation device in the vehicle which is coupled to the image capturing device and calculates from the image data a light colour that the light emits, and

wherein the calculation device calculates a deviation between an average intensity of the reflecting surfaces and/or reflecting objects in predefined areas of the image data and between predefined intensities, and the control device controls the vehicle when the deviation is above a predefined threshold.

2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the calculation device identifies reflecting surfaces and/or reflecting objects in the image data, and calculates the light colour on the basis of the reflecting surfaces and/or reflecting objects.

3. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the calculation device identifies lights in the image data, and excludes the lights from the calculation of the light colour.

4. The control device according to claim 2, wherein the calculation device calculates the light colour on the basis of at least one of an intensity, a profile of the intensity, a position, a colour image of the reflecting surfaces, and reflecting objects in the image data.

5. The control device according to claim 4, wherein the calculation device selects areas from the image data which comprise the reflecting surfaces and/or reflecting objects on the basis of the position of the reflecting surfaces and/or reflecting objects, and to determine the light colour on the basis of an averaged light colour from a plurality of selected areas.

6. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the calculation device normalizes the image data on the basis of the calculated light colour.

7. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the calculation device determines a type of light source used in the light.

8. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the control device emits a warning signal if the deviation is above a predefined threshold.

15. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the calculation device is designed to identify reflecting surfaces and/or reflecting objects, in particular white reflecting surfaces and/or reflecting objects, in the image data, and to calculate the light colour on the basis of the reflecting surfaces and/or reflecting objects.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein the white reflecting surfaces and/or reflecting objects, are identified in the image data, and/or wherein rear lights of other vehicles, are identified in the image data and excluded from the calculation of the light colour.

17. The control device according to claim 2, wherein the calculation device identifies rear lights of other vehicles in the image data and excludes the rear lights from the calculation of the light colour.

18. The control device according to claim 3, wherein the calculation device calculates the light colour on the basis of at least one of an intensity, a profile of the intensity, a position, a colour image of the reflecting surfaces, and reflecting objects in the image data.

9. A method for determining a light colour for a vehicle with a light, which is designed to illuminate an area in front of the vehicle, comprising:

capturing, by an image capturing device in the vehicle, image data for an area in front of the vehicle, which is illuminated by the light in a switched-on state; and

calculating, by a calculation device in the vehicle, a light colour that the light emits on the basis of reflecting surfaces and/or reflecting objects captured by the image data, and

wherein the calculation device calculates a deviation between an average intensity of the reflecting surfaces and/or reflecting objects in predefined areas of the image data and between predefined intensities, and a control device in the vehicle controls the vehicle when the deviation is above a predefined threshold.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein the reflecting surfaces (9) and/or reflecting objects are identified in the image data, and/or wherein lights are identified in the image data and excluded (S5) from the calculation of the light colour.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein the light colour is calculated on the basis of at least one of an intensity, a profile of the intensity, a position, a colour image of the reflecting surfaces, and reflecting objects in the image data;

and

wherein on the basis of the position of the reflecting surfaces and/or reflecting objects, areas are selected from the image data which comprise the reflecting surfaces and/or reflecting objects, and the light colour is calculated on the basis of an averaged light colour from a plurality of selected areas.

12. The method according to claim 9, wherein the image data are normalised on the basis of the calculated light colour.

13. The method according to claim 9, wherein the type of light source used in the light is determined.

14. The method according to claim 9, emitting a warning signal if the deviation is above a predefined threshold.

19. The method according to claim 9, wherein the light colour is calculated on the basis of at least one of an intensity, a profile of the intensity, a position, a colour image of the reflecting surfaces, and reflecting objects in the image data;

and

wherein on the basis of the position of the reflecting surfaces and/or reflecting objects, areas are selected from the image data which comprise the reflecting surfaces and/or reflecting objects, and the light colour is calculated on the basis of an averaged light colour from a plurality of selected areas.