Vehicular image display apparatus

• US 7,825,953 B2
• Filed: 04/06/2006
• Issued: 11/02/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 04/28/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Kato, Mikio, Yoshida, Ichiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Ho; Tuan
• Assistant Examiner(s): CAMARGO, MARLY S.B.
• Application Number:
  US11/398,552
• Publication Number:
  US 20060244829A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,671 Days
• Field of Search: 348143-148, 348113-116, 348/837, 340/461
• US Class Current: 348/148
• 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 1/23 with a predetermined field of view
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 1/28 with an adjustable field of view
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 1/30 providing vision in the non-visible spectrum, e.g. night or infrared vision
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/105 using multiple cameras
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/106 using night vision cameras
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/303 using joined images, e.g. multiple camera images
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/404 triggering from stand-by mode to operation mode
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/802 for monitoring and displaying vehicle exterior blind spot views
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/8053 for bad weather conditions or night vision
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/8066 for monitoring rearward traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/2624 for obtaining an image which is composed of whole input images, e.g. splitscreen

Abstract

A vehicle is provided with two circular fish-eye lens-type cameras and three displays of a rear-window display, rear-pillar display, and side-window display. The first camera takes an image from a first region rearward of the vehicle; the second camera takes an image from a second region left sideward of the vehicle. The first and second regions are partially overlapped. Ultrawide-angle image data of the taken images are converted to typical lens image data, a part of which is clipped to correspond to an integrated region. The integrated region including a part of the first and second regions is viewed by an artificial driver sightline, which is assumed to pass through entire frames of the three displays to reach the integrated region. The three displays then reproduce an image of the integrated region without overlap based on the clipped image data.

Claims

1. An image display apparatus for a vehicle, a seat of a driver of which is adjacent to a first side, which is one of a right side and a left side of the vehicle, the apparatus comprising:

a first camera for producing first image data corresponding to a first outer region rearward of the vehicle;

a second camera for producing second image data corresponding to a second outer region outward of a second side opposite to the first side of the vehicle, the second outer region having an overlap with the first outer region;

a display arranged inside the vehicle for displaying an image of a part of the first outer region and the second outer region;

an image processing unit for processing the first image data and the second image data to produce processed image data corresponding to an integrated region, which includes a part of the first outer region and the second outer region without the overlap and is viewed by an artificial sightline of the driver, which is assumed to pass through the display to reach the integrated region so that the integrated region is visible for the driver;

a display control unit for causing the display to reproduce an image of the integrate region using the processed image data; and

a storage unit for storing shape data specifying an outer shape of each sub-display, and position data specifying arranged positions of each sub-display, wherein

the display includes a plurality of sub-displays arranged inside the vehicle, the sub-displays being adjacent to each other,

the processed image data includes a plurality of data items,

the integrated region includes a plurality of sub-regions,

the image processing unit clips the first image data and the second image data to produce each data item corresponding to each sub-region, which is viewed by the artificial sightline of the driver, which is assumed to pass through each sub-display to reach the each sub-region,

the display control unit causes the each sub-display to reproduce an image of the each sub-region using the each data item,

the image processing unit clips the first image data and the second image data by referring to the shape data and the position data stored in the storage unit, and

the display control unit causes the each sub-display to reproduce an image of the each sub-region using the each data item, the image being displayed without an overlap with an image reproduced in a sub-display adjacent to the each sub-display.

2. The image display apparatus of claim 1, wherein

the display includes (i) a first sub-display arranged on a rear portion inside of the vehicle and (ii) a second sub-display arranged on the second side inside of the vehicle and adjacent to the first sub-display,

the processed image data includes first data item and second data item,

the integrated region includes a first sub-region and a second sub-region,

the image processing unit clips the first image data and the second image data to produce

(i) the first data item corresponding to the first sub-region, which is viewed by the artificial sightline of the driver, which is assumed to pass through the first sub-display to reach the first sub-region, and

(ii) the second data item corresponding to the second sub-region, which is viewed by the artificial sightline of the driver, which is assumed to pass through the second sub-display to reach the second sub-region, and

the display control unit causes the first sub-display and the second sub-display to reproduce an image of the first sub-region and the second sub-region using the first data item and the second data item, the image having no gap and no overlap.

3. The image display apparatus of claim 2, wherein

when the first sub-display includes a rear-window display formed of a transparent-type element in a rear window of the vehicle, while the second sub-display includes a side-window display of a transparent-type element in a side window of the vehicle.

4. The image display apparatus of claim 3, wherein

each of the first camera and the second camera is able to produce from a dark region image data realizing a visible image,

the display control unit causes the rear-window display and the side-window display to reproduce only the image data produced from the dark region by the first camera and the second camera.

5. The image display apparatus of claim 1, wherein

the image processing unit includes an adjusting function for

adjusting a region of a clipped part of the first image data and the second image data based on information relating to a start point of a sightline of a driver.

6. The image display apparatus of claim 1, wherein

the first camera produces the first image data of ultrawide-angle image data by using an ultrawide-angle lens,

the second camera produces the second image data of ultrawide- angle image data by using a wide-angle lens,

the first image data and the second image data are converted from the ultrawide-angle image data to typical-lens image data,

the image processing unit processes the first image data and the second image data which have been converted to the typical-lens image data.

7. The image display apparatus of claim 1, wherein

each of the first camera and the second camera is able to produce from a dark region image data realizing a visible image,

the display control unit causes the display to reproduce the image data produced from the dark region by the first camera and second camera.

8. The image display apparatus of claim 1, wherein

a blind zone for the driver seated on the seat adjacent to the first side of the vehicle is included in the first outer region and the second outer region;

the display control unit causes the display to reproduce an image so that the blind zone is visible from the driver.