Spectrometer

• US 9,234,800 B2
• Filed: 04/08/2011
• Issued: 01/12/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 04/09/2010
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: NEC Corporation, Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: NEC Corporation, Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Kawamata, Shinya, Funayama, Ryuji, Ishi, Tsutomu, Yoshikawa, Yumiko
• Primary Examiner(s): Desta, Elias
• Application Number:
  US13/639,363
• Publication Number:
  US 20130027702A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,740 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 1/4204 with determination of ambient light solar light G01J2001/4266
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/0264 Electrical interface; User interface
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/027 Control of working procedures of a spectrometer; Failure detection; Bandwidth calculation
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/2823 Imaging spectrometer
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/457 Correlation spectrometry, e.g. of the intensity G01J3/453 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/194 using hyperspectral data, i.e. more or other wavelengths than RGB
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/56 exterior to a vehicle by using sensors mounted on the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/58 Recognition of moving objects or obstacles, e.g. vehicles or pedestrians; Recognition of traffic objects, e.g. traffic signs, traffic lights or roads
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/103 Static body considered as a whole, e.g. static pedestrian or occupant recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/166 for active traffic, e.g. moving vehicles, pedestrians, bikes

Abstract

A spectrometer recognizes a measurement target on the basis of the spectral data set of observed light detected by a spectral sensor capable of measuring wavelength information and light intensity information. The spectrometer is provided with a spectral data processor. Spectral data sets are detected at two different positions by the spectral sensor, and the processor subtracts a first spectral data set from a second spectral data set, or divides the first spectral data set by the second spectral data set to calculate one phase correlation spectral data set, which is correlated to the spectral data sets at the two different positions. The processor simultaneously identifies the measurement target corresponding to the two different positions on the basis of the correlation spectral data set.

Claims

1. A spectrometer for recognizing a measurement target based on spectral data of observed light detected by a spectral sensor that measures wavelength information and light intensity information, the spectrometer comprising:

a spectral data processor that

calculates one correlation spectral data set as one of a ratio of or a difference between two spectral data sets corresponding to two different positions detected by the spectral sensor, and

simultaneously identifies measurement targets corresponding to the two different positions based on the one correlation spectral data set.

2. The spectrometer according to claim 1, wherein the spectral data processor calculates, as the correlation spectral data set, the ratio or the difference of the spectral data sets corresponding to the two different positions after the spectral data sets undergo at least one of normalization process and quadratic differential process.

3. The spectrometer according to claim 1, wherein

the spectral data processor performs clustering processing to classify, as spectral data sets in the same spectrum area, spectral data sets in which the difference in light intensities for each wavelength has a predetermined value or less, and

the spectral data sets corresponding to the two different positions are spectral data sets in two mutually adjacent or two non-adjacent spectrum areas of a plurality of different spectrum areas defined by the clustering processing.

4. The spectrometer according to claim 1, wherein

the spectral data processor registers beforehand, as data sets for matching, a plurality of data sets each composed of a combination of the spectral data sets of at least two measurement targets corresponding to a correlation spectral data set, and

based on matching between the correlation spectral data set and the data set for matching, which is registered beforehand, the spectral data processor identifies measurement targets corresponding to the two different positions.

5. The spectrometer according to claim 1, wherein one of the spectral data sets corresponding to the two different positions is a spectral data set of a road surface.

6. The spectrometer according to claim 1, further comprising:

a context calculator that calculates a context, which is information showing characteristics of a relationship between measurement targets corresponding to the two different positions, wherein

the context calculator calculates the context based on at least one of a spatial positional relationship and a spatial size relationship of two measurement targets obtained from the spectral data sets corresponding to the two different positions, and

the correlation spectral data set is a first correlation spectral data set, and the spectral data processor generates a second correlation spectral data set by correlating the first correlation spectral data set to the context, and identifies measurement targets corresponding to the two different positions by using the second correlation spectral data set.

7. The spectrometer according to claim 6, wherein, with one of the spectral data sets corresponding to the two different positions being defined as a reference spectral data set, the spectral data processor calculates, as the second correlation spectral data set, a data set obtained by dividing, by the reference spectral data set, the other one of the spectral data sets, or a data set obtained by subtracting, from the reference spectral data set, the other one of the spectral data sets.

8. The spectrometer according to claim 7, wherein the reference spectral data set is a spectral data set of a road surface.

9. The spectrometer according claim 1, wherein the spectral data sets corresponding to the two different positions are spectral data sets at a boundary portion between at least two different measurement targets.

10. The spectrometer according to claim 9, wherein one of the spectral data sets corresponding to the two different positions is a spectral data set of a road surface.