Obstacle monitoring device using one-dimensional signal

• US 7,170,548 B2
• Filed: 11/25/2002
• Issued: 01/30/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 11/26/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Ishikawa, Takahiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Vo, Tung
• Application Number:
  US10/302,956
• Publication Number:
  US 20030099400A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,527 Days
• Field of Search: 348148-149, 382/104, 382106-107, 382/190, 382/103, 340/937, 701/301
• US Class Current: 348/148
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/255 Detecting or recognising potential candidate objects based on visual cues, e.g. shapes

Abstract

Luminous values of pixels of coordinates previously set as an obstacle presence line are inputted to a memory as a one-dimensional signal converted from a two-dimensional image signal taken by a camera. A portion of the line has a luminous value other than a luminous value predicted as a luminous value of a normal road. The portion of the line is then extracted as a vehicle candidate range. Further, based on characteristic of the vehicle such as a vehicle width or a relative speed, presence or absence of the vehicle is determined by removing noise from the extracted vehicle candidate range.

Claims

1. An obstacle monitoring device comprising:

imaging means for taking an image of a predetermined area;

one-dimension extracting means for extracting a one-dimensional signal from the image; and

obstacle detecting means for determining presence or absence of an obstacle based on the one-dimensional signal,

wherein the one-dimension extracting means includes;

one-dimension setting means for setting a method of converting the image taken by the imaging means into the one-dimensional signal; and

one-dimension generating means for converting the image into the one-dimensional signal in accordance with the converting method set by the one-dimension setting means,

wherein the one-dimension setting means includes;

line setting means for setting a suspected line on which an obstacle is suspected to be present; and

process setting means for setting, based on a pixel on the suspected line, the converting method to be adopted by the one-dimension generating means; and

data detecting means for detecting a speed and a steering angle of an own vehicle where the obstacle monitoring device is provided,

wherein the line setting means adjusts the suspected line in accordance with the speed and the steering angle of the own vehicle detected by the data detecting means.

2. An obstacle monitoring device comprising:

imaging means for taking an image of a predetermined area;

one-dimension extracting means for extracting a one-dimensional signal from the image; and

obstacle detecting means for determining presence or absence of an obstacle based on the one-dimensional signal,

wherein the one-dimension extracting means includes;

one-dimension setting means for setting a method of converting the image taken by the imaging means into the one-dimensional signal; and

one-dimension generating means for converting the image into the one-dimensional signal in accordance with the converting method set by the one-dimension setting means,

wherein the one-dimension setting means includes;

line setting means for setting a suspected line on which an obstacle is suspected to be present; and

process setting means for setting, based on a pixel on the suspected line, the converting method to be adopted by the one-dimension generating means; and

navigation means for calculating a current position and map information around the current position, wherein the line setting means sets the suspected line based on the current position and the map information around the current position calculated by the navigation means.

3. An obstacle monitoring device comprising:

imaging means for taking an image of a predetermined area;

one-dimension extracting means for extracting a one-dimensional signal from the image; and

obstacle detecting means for determining presence or absence of an obstacle based on the one-dimensional signal,

wherein the obstacle detecting means includes;

range modeling means for estimating an obstacle candidate range in which the obstacle is estimated to be present based on a change of a signal value of the one-dimensional signal extracted by the one-dimension extracting means;

speed modeling means for estimating a relative speed at a respective point of the one-dimensional signal based on a correlation of two of the one-dimensional signals at different time points extracted by the one-dimension extracting means; and

obstacle determining means for determining the obstacle by using the obstacle candidate range estimated by the range modeling means and the estimated relative speed by the speed modeling means,

wherein the speed modeling means is composed of;

speed converting means for converting two of the one-dimensional signals at the different time points extracted by the one-dimension extracting means into the one-dimensional signals emphasizing a difference between the obstacle candidate range and other range; and

speed model estimating means for estimating the relative speed at the respective point of the one-dimensional signal based on a correlation of two of the one-dimensional signals at different time points converted by the speed converting means,

wherein the speed converting means converts the one-dimensional signal extracted by the one-dimension extracting means into a one-dimensional signal expressing only the obstacle candidate range by masking a background range.

4. An obstacle monitoring device comprising:

imaging means for taking an image of a predetermined area;

one-dimension extracting means for extracting a one-dimensional signal from the image; and

obstacle detecting means for determining presence or absence of an obstacle based on the one-dimensional signal,

wherein the obstacle detecting means includes;

range modeling means for estimating an obstacle candidate range in which the obstacle is estimated to be present based on a change of a signal value of the one-dimensional signal extracted by the one-dimension extracting means;

speed modeling means for estimating a relative speed at a respective point of the one-dimensional signal based on a correlation of two of the one-dimensional signals at different time points extracted by the one-dimension extracting means; and

obstacle determining means for determining the obstacle by using the obstacle candidate range estimated by the range modeling means and the estimated relative speed by the speed modeling means,

wherein the range modeling means is comprised of;

range converting means for converting the one-dimensional signal extracted by the one-dimension extracting means into a one-dimensional signal emphasizing a difference between the obstacle candidate range and the other range based on the change of the signal value; and

range model estimating means for estimating the obstacle candidate range based on the change of the signal value of the one-dimensional signal converted by the range converting means.

5. An obstacle monitoring device according to claim 4, wherein the range converting means converts the one-dimensional signal extracted by the one-dimension extracting means into a one-dimensional signal expressing only the obstacle candidate range by masking a background range.