Vehicular headlamp apparatus

• US 9,487,123 B2
• Filed: 09/06/2013
• Issued: 11/08/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/07/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation, Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation, Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Mizuno, Ryu, Kasai, Hajime, Takagaki, Tatsuya
• Primary Examiner(s): NEILS, PEGGY A
• Application Number:
  US14/426,330
• Publication Number:
  US 20150239392A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,159 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/085 due to special conditions, e.g. adverse weather, type of road, badly illuminated road signs or potential dangers B60Q1/10, B60Q1/12, B60Q1/1423 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/143 combined with another condition, e.g. using vehicle recognition from camera images or activation of wipers
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2300/056 Special anti-blinding beams, e.g. a standard beam is chopped or moved in order not to blind
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2300/14 Other vehicle conditions
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 2300/41 preceding vehicle

Abstract

A vehicular headlamp apparatus includes: a headlamp that illuminates ahead of a vehicle; illumination range changing means for changing an illumination range of the headlamp; detecting means for detecting a position of a forward vehicle present in front of the vehicle; controlling means for controlling the illumination range changing means based on the position of the forward vehicle detected by the detecting means; and determining means for determining whether or not the position of the forward vehicle is within the illumination range. When the position of the forward vehicle is determined as being within the illumination range, the apparatus changes the illumination range so as to have the position of the forward vehicle fall outside the illumination range. When the position of the forward vehicle is determined as being outside the illumination range, the apparatus does not change the illumination range or performs, on the illumination range changing means, a control of suppressing change of the illumination range.

Claims

1. A vehicular headlamp apparatus comprising:

a headlamp that illuminates ahead of a vehicle;

illumination range changing means for changing an illumination range of the headlamp;

detecting means for detecting a position of a forward vehicle present in front of the vehicle; and

controlling means for controlling the illumination range changing means based on the position of the forward vehicle detected by the detecting means,

wherein

the vehicular headlamp apparatus further comprises determining means for determining whether or not the position of the forward vehicle is within the illumination range,

when the position of the forward vehicle is determined by the determining means as being within the illumination range, the controlling means controls the illumination range changing means to change the illumination range so as to have the position of the forward vehicle fall outside the illumination range,

when the position of the forward vehicle is determined as being outside the illumination range, the controlling means does not change the illumination range or performs, on the illumination range changing means, a control of suppressing change of the illumination range,

the detecting means comprises a camera that takes images ahead of the vehicle and image processing means that produces, based on the images taken by the camera, image information including a coordinate of the forward vehicle,

the detecting means identifies the position of the forward vehicle by an end coordinate which indicates the lateral position of an end of the forward vehicle in a vehicle width direction,

the determining means makes the determination based on a comparison between a reference coordinate which indicates an inner boundary position of the illumination range and the end coordinate,

when the position of the forward vehicle is determined by the determining means as being within the illumination range, the controlling means controls the illumination range changing means to change the illumination range so as to bring the reference coordinate into coincidence with the end coordinate,

the determining means calculates a deviation between the reference coordinate indicating the inner boundary position of the illumination range and the end coordinate, and makes the determination based on the deviation,

when the deviation calculated by the determining means is greater than or equal to a preset value, the controlling means calculates a target coordinate which internally divides the end coordinate and the reference coordinate in a predetermined ratio, and controls the illumination range changing means to change the illumination range so as to bring the reference coordinate into agreement with the target coordinate.

2. The vehicular headlamp apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein

when the deviation calculated by the determining means is less than the preset value, the controlling means does not change the illumination range for a predetermined time in which the state continues, and

after the elapse of the predetermined time, the controlling means calculates a target coordinate which internally divides the end coordinate and the reference coordinate in a second predetermined ratio different from the predetermined ratio, and controls the illumination range changing means to change the illumination range so as to bring the reference coordinate into agreement with the target coordinate.

3. A vehicular headlamp apparatus comprising:

a headlamp that illuminates ahead of a vehicle;

illumination range changing means for changing an illumination range of the headlamp;

detecting means for detecting a position of a forward vehicle present in front of the vehicle; and

controlling means for controlling the illumination range changing means based on the position of the forward vehicle detected by the detecting means,

wherein

the vehicular headlamp apparatus further comprises determining means for determining whether or not the position of the forward vehicle is within the illumination range,

when the position of the forward vehicle is determined by the determining means as being within the illumination range, the controlling means controls the illumination range changing means to change the illumination range so as to have the position of the forward vehicle fall outside the illumination range,

when the position of the forward vehicle is determined as being outside the illumination range, the controlling means does not change the illumination range or performs, on the illumination range changing means, a control of suppressing change of the illumination range,

the detecting means comprises a camera that takes images ahead of the vehicle and image processing means that produces, based on the images taken by the camera, image information including a coordinate of the forward vehicle,

the detecting means identifies the position of the forward vehicle by an end coordinate which indicates the lateral position of an end of the forward vehicle in a vehicle width direction,

the determining means makes the determination based on a comparison between a reference coordinate which indicates an inner boundary position of the illumination range and the end coordinate,

when the position of the forward vehicle is determined by the determining means as being within the illumination range, the controlling means controls the illumination range changing means to change the illumination range so as to bring the reference coordinate into coincidence with the end coordinate,

the determining means calculates a deviation between the reference coordinate indicating the inner boundary position of the illumination range and the end coordinate, and makes the determination based on the deviation,

when the position of the forward vehicle is determined by the determining means as being outside the illumination range and the deviation is less than a preset value, the controlling means does not change the illumination range for a predetermined time in which the state continues, and

after the elapse of the predetermined time, the controlling means calculates a target coordinate which internally divides the end coordinate and the reference coordinate in a predetermined ratio, and controls the illumination range changing means to change the illumination range so as to bring the reference coordinate into agreement with the target coordinate.