Method and apparatus for estimating the velocity vector of multiple vehicles on non-level and curved roads using a single camera
First Claim
1. A system for determining velocity in three dimensions of at least one vehicle, from a two-dimensional image of the at least one vehicle in a roadway, comprising:
- a camera configured to acquire two-dimensional images of a three-dimensional roadway system, the roadway system comprising at least one road, the roadway system including at least one vehicle moving relative to a background scene,a processor, coupled to the camera, configured to receive and store an image sequence of the three-dimensional roadway system, said processor configured to record the image sequence as a series of frames, each frame including image data forming a two-dimensional representation including a plurality of image regions depicting the moving vehicles and the background scene at an associated point in time, the processor configured to map each pixel of the two-dimensional background image to a three-dimensional model of the three-dimensional roadway system to produce a conversion map for converting two dimensional pixel locations to three-dimensional real-world locations, the processor configured to convert pixels assigned in the two-dimensional image to each identified vehicle to a three-dimensional real world location using the conversion map, the processor configured to identify a moving vehicle of the plurality of moving vehicles by comparing a plurality of frames of the image sequence and identifying a image region of the image sequence including the moving vehicle, the processor configured to calculate a location of the moving vehicle in the three-dimensional roadway system in each of the plurality of frames containing the image region including the moving vehicle, and the processor configured to calculate a velocity vector consisting of a speed and a direction of the moving vehicle in the three-dimensional roadway system in each of the plurality of frames containing the image region including the moving vehicle.
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Abstract
A method and an apparatus is provided for determining the velocity vector, speed, and direction of moving vehicles traveling on roadways which change elevation and have curves. A camera mounted above a roadway observes at least one vehicles traveling in different directions on different roads. Each pixel in the two-dimensional optical image is mapped into a three-dimensional real world location to enable the moving vehicles to be analyzed in the three-dimensional real world as they travel on roads, which may change elevation and may have curves. The estimated vehicle velocities may be displayed on an image near the moving vehicle. Individual images with vehicle velocities may be posted on an Internet site. The sequence of optical images, or streaming video, with the displayed vehicle velocities may also be used for television news programs that show traffic moving on the roadways.
98 Citations
9 Claims
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1. A system for determining velocity in three dimensions of at least one vehicle, from a two-dimensional image of the at least one vehicle in a roadway, comprising:
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a camera configured to acquire two-dimensional images of a three-dimensional roadway system, the roadway system comprising at least one road, the roadway system including at least one vehicle moving relative to a background scene, a processor, coupled to the camera, configured to receive and store an image sequence of the three-dimensional roadway system, said processor configured to record the image sequence as a series of frames, each frame including image data forming a two-dimensional representation including a plurality of image regions depicting the moving vehicles and the background scene at an associated point in time, the processor configured to map each pixel of the two-dimensional background image to a three-dimensional model of the three-dimensional roadway system to produce a conversion map for converting two dimensional pixel locations to three-dimensional real-world locations, the processor configured to convert pixels assigned in the two-dimensional image to each identified vehicle to a three-dimensional real world location using the conversion map, the processor configured to identify a moving vehicle of the plurality of moving vehicles by comparing a plurality of frames of the image sequence and identifying a image region of the image sequence including the moving vehicle, the processor configured to calculate a location of the moving vehicle in the three-dimensional roadway system in each of the plurality of frames containing the image region including the moving vehicle, and the processor configured to calculate a velocity vector consisting of a speed and a direction of the moving vehicle in the three-dimensional roadway system in each of the plurality of frames containing the image region including the moving vehicle. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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Specification