Vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus

• US 20060115120A1
• Filed: 11/28/2005
• Published: 06/01/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Arriver Software AB (Qualcomm, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Nagaoka, Nobuharu, Hattori, Hiroshi, Hashimoto, Hideki, Taniguchi, Fuminori
• Granted Patent: US 8,115,809 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/104
• 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 2300/105 using multiple cameras
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/106 using night vision cameras
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/205 using a head-up display
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/207 using multi-purpose displays, e.g. camera image and navigation or video on same display
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/30 characterised by the type of image processing
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/302 combining image information with GPS information or vehicle data, e.g. vehicle speed, gyro, steering angle data
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/404 triggering from stand-by mode to operation mode
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/8053 for bad weather conditions or night vision
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/33 Transforming infrared radiation cameras or camera modules for generating image signals from infrared radiation H04N23/20; circuitry of SSIS for transforming infrared radiation into image signals H04N25/20

Abstract

A vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus which includes: an imaging device that captures a surroundings of a vehicle; a temperature measuring device that measures a temperature of the imaging device; and an OFF signal output device that outputs a command signal to set a power supply of the imaging device to the OFF state in accordance with the temperature of the imaging device measured by the temperature measuring device.

Claims

1. A vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus comprising:

an imaging device that captures a surroundings of a vehicle;

a temperature measuring device that measures a temperature of the imaging device; and

an OFF signal output device that outputs a command signal to set a power supply of the imaging device to the OFF state in accordance with the temperature of the imaging device measured by the temperature measuring device.

2. The vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a reset determining device that determines whether or not a state of the imaging device is a specified resettable state; and

a restart device that restarts the imaging device with the power supply set to the OFF state when the state of the imaging device is determined to be a specified resettable state by the reset determining device.

3. The vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

an elapsed time measuring device that measures an elapsed time from a moment the command signal is output by the OFF signal output device,

wherein the reset determining device determines whether or not the state of the imaging device is a specified resettable state based on the elapsed time measured by the elapsed time measuring device.

4. The vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

a vehicle speed measuring device that measures the speed of the vehicle,

wherein the reset determining device determines whether or not the state of the imaging device is a specified resettable state based on the speed of the vehicle measured by the vehicle speed measuring device.

5. The vehicle surroundings monitoring apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

a vehicle temperature state measuring device that measures a temperature state of the vehicle,

the reset determining device determines whether or not the state of the imaging device is a specified resettable state based on the temperature state of the vehicle measured by the vehicle temperature state measuring device.