DRIVING-OPERATION ASSIST AND RECORDING MEDIUM

• US 20080033606A1
• Filed: 08/28/2007
• Published: 02/07/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/08/1998
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Ishii, Hirofumi, Nobori, Kunio, Nakagawa, Masamichi, Okamoto, Shusaku, Morimura, Atsushi
• Application Number:
  US11/846,027
• Publication Number:
  US 20080033606A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/28
• 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 1/28 with an adjustable field of view
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/102 using 360 degree surveillance camera system
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/105 using multiple cameras
• 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 2300/303 using joined images, e.g. multiple camera images
• 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 2300/607 from a bird's eye viewpoint
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/806 for aiding parking
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/8086 for vehicle path indication
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 15/02 Steering position indicators ; Steering position determination; Steering aids
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 15/027 Parking aids, e.g. instruction means
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 15/028 Guided parking by providing commands to the driver, e.g. acoustically or optically
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 17/05 Geographic models
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/181 for receiving images from a plurality of remote sources

Abstract

A vehicle-operation assist includes a circumferential-state imager for imaging a circumferential state of a vehicle with a camera and generating a circumferential-state image; a synthetic-image generator for generating a synthetic image by superimposing on the circumferential-state image, an assumed-movement pattern of the vehicle performing a predetermined series of driving operations; and a display for displaying the synthetic image. The circumferential-state imager has at least one camera and a camera parameter table for storing characteristics of the camera and generating the circumferential-state image on the basis of the camera characteristics.

Claims

1. A vehicle operation assist for a vehicle mounted with a camera, comprising:

a circumferential state imaging unit operable to generate a circumferential state image using an output image from the camera;

a synthetic-image generating unit operable to generate a synthetic image by using the circumferential-state image, said synthetic image including an assumed-movement pattern showing movement of the vehicle in case of performing a predetermined driving operation, said assumed-movement pattern including (i) a trace between a start position and an end position of the vehicle, and (ii) a synthetic image of the vehicle at the end position in case of performing the predetermined driving operation; and

a display unit operable to display the synthetic image.

2. The vehicle operation assist according to claim 1, wherein

the assumed-movement pattern further includes a synthetic image of the vehicle at the start position in case of performing the predetermined driving operation.

3. The vehicle-operation assist according to claim 2, wherein

the synthetic image further includes a synthetic image of the vehicle at the current position.

4. The vehicle-operation assist according to claim 1, wherein

the synthetic image of the vehicle shows a circumscribed area of the vehicle.

5. The vehicle operation assist according to claim 1, wherein

the synthetic image of the vehicle is an actual-vehicle image.

6. The vehicle operation assist according to claim 1, wherein

the circumferential-state image is a virtual viewpoint image in which the vehicle and its surroundings are viewed from a virtual viewpoint, said virtual viewpoint being different from a viewpoint of the camera.

7. The vehicle-operation assist according to claim 8, wherein

the predetermined viewpoint is a point fixed to the three-dimensional space or the vehicle, and the circumferential-state imaging unit changes a predetermined viewpoint automatically or through an input from a driver.

8. The vehicle-operation assist according to claim 1, wherein

the assumed-movement pattern includes virtual poles arranged on the outer edge of the vehicle movement area.

9. The vehicle-operation assist according to claim 3, wherein

the synthetic-image generating unit superimposes the synthetic image of the vehicle at the start position in case of performing the predetermined driving operation on a position same as the current-position of the vehicle.

10. The vehicle-operation assist according to claim 1, further comprising

a pattern selecting unit selects one of the assumed-movement patterns through an input from a driver.

11. The vehicle-operation assist according to claim 1, wherein

the trace included in assumed-movement pattern, showing a circumscribed area where the vehicle passes through in case of performing the predetermined driving operation.

12. The vehicle-operation assist according to claim 1, wherein

the synthetic-image generating unit generates a synthetic image by superimposing two or more of the assumed-movement patterns on the circumferential-state image.

13. The vehicle-operation assist according to claim 1, wherein

the assumed-movement pattern includes a change from backward movement to forward movement or from forward movement to backward movement in the predetermined driving operation.