Field watch apparatus

• US 8,593,519 B2
• Filed: 02/04/2008
• Issued: 11/26/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/06/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Tauchi, Makiko, Iguchi, Sei, Nagata, Asako
• Primary Examiner(s): Backer, Firmin
• Assistant Examiner(s): BUI, JONATHAN A
• Application Number:
  US12/068,164
• Publication Number:
  US 20080186382A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,122 Days
• Field of Search: 348/148, 348/149, 348/142, 348/143, 348/144, 348/147, 348/153, 348/159
• US Class Current: 348/148
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/89 for mapping or imaging
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/86 Combinations of lidar systems with systems other than lidar, radar or sonar, e.g. with direction finders
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9316 combined with communication equipment with other vehicles or with base stations
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/932 using own vehicle data, e.g. ground speed, steering wheel direction
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9321 Velocity regulation, e.g. cruise control
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9322 using additional data, e.g. driver condition, road state or weather data
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/93271 in the front of the vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/93272 in the back of the vehicles

Abstract

A field watch apparatus for use in a subject vehicle acquires a road image from a roadside capture unit located around the subject vehicle on a road and, based on the acquired image, generates an overhead view of a field around the subject vehicle in an intuitively recognizable manner by including a distant surrounding vehicle in the view, thereby providing a precisely understandable view of the field around the subject vehicle for the ease of satisfactorily identifying the distant surrounding vehicle without being compromised by the position of the roadside capture unit.

Claims

1. A field watch apparatus for use by a subject vehicle comprising:

a plurality of road image acquisition units, each being disposed at respective predetermined intervals from each other on respectively associated structures fixedly situated with respect to the earth along a vehicle roadway and being configured to acquire at least a first road image that includes the subject vehicle from a first of said road image acquisition units and a second road image, different from the first road image, that includes a front or a rear field view relative to the subject vehicle from a second of said road image acquisition units;

an overhead view generation unit configured to generate an overhead view of the subject vehicle with a viewpoint from above the subject vehicle, wherein the overhead view of the subject vehicle is generated as a view of a real image of a nearby area of the subject vehicle by composing at least the first road image and the second road image; and

a display unit disposed in the subject vehicle and configured to display the overhead view of the subject vehicle, wherein a position of the subject vehicle is represented in an identifiable manner in the overhead view.

2. The field watch apparatus of claim 1 further comprising:

a surrounding capture unit disposed in the subject vehicle and configured to capture an image of the subject vehicle surroundings, wherein

the overhead view generation unit generates the overhead view based on both of the image of vehicle surroundings from the surrounding capture unit and the first road image and the second road image from said first image acquisition unit and said second road image acquisition unit.

3. The field watch apparatus of claim 2, wherein the second road image acquisition unit captures at least one of the road image of a far front area and a far rear area of the subject vehicle relative to a capture perspective of the surrounding capture unit, and

the overhead view generation unit generates the overhead view of the subject vehicle by supplementing the surroundings image from the surrounding capture unit with the first road image and the second road image from the said first road image acquisition unit and said second road image acquisition unit at a position that is at least a predetermined distance away from the subject vehicle in one of a front and a rear of the subject vehicle.

4. The field watch apparatus of claim 3, wherein the overhead view generation unit generates the overhead view of the subject vehicle so that another vehicle'"'"'s image traveling at a position that is at least subject vehicle'"'"'s length backwardly away from the subject vehicle in one of a subject vehicle'"'"'s lane and an adjacent lane of the subject vehicle'"'"'s lane is included therein.

6. The field watch apparatus of claim 1 further comprising:

a vehicle identify unit configured to identify another vehicle'"'"'s image in the overhead view of the subject vehicle;

a distance detection unit configured to detect a distance to another vehicle around the subject vehicle; and

a distance output unit configured to output information on the distance to the another vehicle, wherein the distance to the another vehicle is output on the overhead view of the subject vehicle in a manner that identifies a corresponding another vehicle'"'"'s image.

7. The field watch apparatus of claim 6, wherein the distance detection unit is a unit configured to detect a distance to the another vehicle that is disposed on the subject vehicle separately from an image acquisition device that serves for generation of the overhead view of the subject vehicle.

8. The field watch apparatus of claim 7 further comprising:

a vehicle mapping unit in another vehicle, wherein

the distance detection unit is configured to acquire direction information of said another vehicle from the subject vehicle as well as to acquire distance information from the subject vehicle to said another vehicle,

said another vehicle mapping unit configured to generate mapping information that maps the another vehicle around the subject vehicle based on the distance information and the direction information, and

the another vehicle identify unit refers to the another vehicle mapping information for correcting an identification result of the another vehicle'"'"'s image on the overhead view of the subject vehicle.

9. The field watch apparatus of claim 7, wherein

the distance detection unit is a radar distance measurement device.

10. The field watch apparatus of claim 6, wherein

the distance detection unit includes a marking unit that is configured to put a different mark on said another vehicle'"'"'s image in the overhead view of the subject vehicle according to the detected distance to said another vehicle.

11. The field watch apparatus of claim 10, wherein

the marking unit uses a different color for marking the another vehicle'"'"'s image according to the detected distance.

12. The field watch apparatus of claim 10, wherein

the marking unit uses a different marking frame that borders the another vehicle'"'"'s image in the overhead view of the subject vehicle according to the detected distance.

13. The field watch apparatus of claim 6 further comprising:

a warning information output unit that outputs warning information when the overhead view of the subject vehicle includes the another vehicle that has the distance detected by the distance detection unit being within a predetermined warning distance.

14. The field watch apparatus of claim 13 further comprising:

a relative approach speed identify unit that identifies a relative approach speed of the another vehicle from behind the subject vehicle, wherein the warning information output unit outputs the warning information when the overhead view of the subject vehicle includes the another vehicle that has the relative approach speed of positive value being greater than a predetermined warning approach speed.

15. The field watch apparatus of claim 13 further comprising:

a catch-up time calculation unit configured to calculate catch-up information that reflects a catch-up time of the another vehicle from behind the subject vehicle based on the distance detected by the distance detection unit and the relative approach speed identified by the relative approach speed identify unit, wherein

the warning information output unit outputs the warning information when the overhead view of the subject vehicle includes the another vehicle that has the catch-up time being smaller than a predetermined warning catch-up time.

16. The field watch apparatus of claim 13, wherein

the warning information output unit includes a warning marking generation unit configured to mark the image of the another vehicle that is treated as a warning object in the overhead view of the subject vehicle in a distinctively recognizable manner from the images of the vehicles that are not treated as the warning objects.

17. The field watch apparatus of claim 16, wherein

the warning marking generation unit uses a predetermined color for marking the image of the another vehicle that is treated as the warning object.

18. The field watch apparatus of claim 13 further comprising:

a warning sound output unit configured to provide sound output of the warning information, wherein the warning sound output unit is included in the warning information output unit.

19. The field watch apparatus of claim 1, wherein

the overhead view generation unit generates the overhead view of the subject vehicle by partially substituting the overhead view with a substitution image that is not derived from the first road image or the second road image.

20. The field watch apparatus of claim 19, wherein

the substitution image is an image of the subject vehicle.

21. The field watch apparatus of claim 13,

wherein the overhead view generation unit generates the overhead view of the subject vehicle when the subject vehicle provides a turn signal operation to change a travel lane;

and

the another vehicle identify unit identifies at least one other vehicle that is traveling in front of or behind the subject vehicle,

wherein when the another vehicle is traveling in front of the subject vehicle at a speed less than a predetermined value, the warning information output unit provides a warning, and

wherein when the another vehicle is traveling behind the subject vehicle at a speed greater than a predetermined value, the warning information output unit provides a warning.

22. The field watch apparatus of claim 13, further comprising:

a driver awareness assessment unit that determines a condition level of a driver based on various inputs from a plurality of sensors,

wherein the warning information output unit provides a warning based on the condition level provided by the driver awareness assessment unit.

23. The field watch apparatus of claim 22, wherein

the warning information output unit provides a warning earlier when the condition level of the driver is determined as low as compared to a warning provided when the condition level of the driver is determined as normal.

5. A field watch apparatus for use in a subject vehicle comprising:

a plurality of road image acquisition units that are predisposed at predetermined intervals on a road on which a subject vehicle is traveling and a vehicle camera disposed on another vehicle traveling around the subject vehicle, wherein the plurality of road image acquisition units are on respectively associated structures fixedly situated with respect to the earth;

a first of said road image acquisition units configured to acquire a first road image that includes the subject vehicle and another vehicle from said first roadside capture unit, a second of said roadside capture units configured to acquire a second road image, different from the first road image, that includes a front or a rear field view relative to the subject vehicle, and the vehicle camera disposed on another vehicle configured to acquire a first vehicle image, different from the first and the second road images, that includes the subject vehicle;

an overhead view generation unit configured to generate an overhead view of the subject vehicle with a viewpoint from above the subject vehicle, wherein the overhead view of the subject vehicle is generated as a view of a real image of a nearby area of the subject vehicle by composing at least the first and second road images and the first vehicle image; and

a display unit disposed in the subject vehicle and configured to display the overhead view of the subject vehicle, wherein a position of the subject vehicle is represented in an identifiable manner in the overhead view.