JP2002059798A - Vehicle periphery monitoring device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Problem] To provide a vehicle periphery monitoring device capable of accurately displaying an obstacle around a vehicle at low cost. SOLUTION: In a vehicle periphery monitoring device which is mounted on a vehicle and displays a positional relationship between the vehicle and an object existing around the vehicle, a plurality of sensors 3 for detecting an object existing around the vehicle and information of the sensors are provided. Image processing means 12 for generating image data representing a positional relationship between the vehicle and the object based on the
A display unit for displaying a positional relationship between the vehicle and an object existing around the vehicle based on the generated image data; The distance between the vehicle and the obstacle can be detected by using a low-cost clearance sonar or a sound wave detecting device, and the positional relationship between the vehicle and the obstacle can be displayed in real time.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicle periphery monitoring device which is mounted on a vehicle and displays an image of an obstacle around a vehicle moving forward or backward, and more particularly, to accurately determine the positional relationship between the vehicle and the obstacle. It can be displayed.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a plurality of cameras are installed around a vehicle, and an obstacle around the vehicle when the vehicle is traveling or moving backward is displayed on a display unit in a vehicle cabin based on the images of the cameras. It has been known. In this device, an image indicating a distance relationship between the host vehicle and an obstacle is generated from images of a plurality of cameras and displayed on a display unit. The driver can confirm the distance between the vehicle and the obstacle by this display, so that the driver can avoid contact with the obstacle and secure the safety around the vehicle.

In addition, one camera is installed at the rear of the vehicle,
A monitoring device that displays an image of the camera on a monitor is also known. The driver can check the rear of the vehicle on the monitor image, and can safely move the vehicle backward.

[0004]

However, the conventional vehicle periphery monitoring device has the following problems.

[0005] In an apparatus for mounting a plurality of cameras on a vehicle and displaying the distance relationship between the vehicle and an obstacle, the cost of the cameras is high, and the installation of a plurality of these cameras results in an expensive system as a whole. There's a problem. In order to suppress the increase in cost, a measure has been taken to reduce the level from color display to monochrome display, but in this case, the vehicle and obstacle are clearly distinguished from each other in the black and white color scheme. There is a problem that it becomes difficult to do.

[0006] Further, in a device in which one camera is installed at the rear of the vehicle to check the rear of the vehicle, since the camera is fixed to the vehicle, there is a blind spot that cannot be photographed by this camera, and an obstacle behind the vehicle exists. There is a problem that confirmation is not perfect.

An object of the present invention is to solve such a conventional problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle periphery monitoring device capable of accurately displaying obstacles around the vehicle at low cost.

[0008]

Therefore, according to the present invention, a vehicle periphery monitoring device mounted on a vehicle and displaying the positional relationship between the vehicle and objects around the vehicle detects an object around the vehicle. A plurality of sensors, video processing means for generating image data representing a positional relationship between the vehicle and the object based on information from the sensors, and a positional relationship between the vehicle and an object existing around the vehicle based on the generated image data. And a display means for displaying.

Therefore, the distance between the vehicle and the obstacle can be detected by using a relatively low-cost clearance sonar or a sound wave detecting device, and the positional relationship between the vehicle and the obstacle can be displayed in real time.

Therefore, this device can accurately display the relationship between the vehicle and obstacles around the vehicle, avoid contact of the vehicle with obstacles, and ensure safety around the vehicle. .

[0011]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS (First Embodiment) A vehicle periphery monitoring device according to a first embodiment has a function of grasping an object existing around a vehicle and displaying a positional relationship between the vehicle and the object. ing.

As shown in FIG. 1, this device detects a distance to an obstacle, and includes a plurality of sensor devices 3 mounted on the vehicle, and detects a distance between the vehicle and the obstacle based on a signal from the sensor device 3. The vehicle includes a video processing device 1 for generating an image indicating a positional relationship, and a display unit 2 configured by an LCD or the like for displaying an image generated by the video processing device 1 for a vehicle.

The sensor device 3 is constituted by a clearance sonar, a sound wave detecting device, or the like. The vehicular image processing device 1 includes a sensor signal acquisition processing device 11 that receives a signal from each sensor device 3, and a vehicle and an obstacle based on distance information of each sensor 3 input from the sensor signal acquisition processing device 11. To generate a signal indicating a pseudo distance relationship between
U and the like, and an arithmetic processing unit 12
A video signal is generated by a storage device 13 composed of a memory and the like, which is used as a virtual memory at the time of calculation and accumulates a signal from each sensor device 3, and a signal indicating a positional relationship from the arithmetic processing device 12. And a display control device 14 including an LCD driver and the like. It should be noted that the storage device 13 stores in advance data of a vehicle shape to be displayed as an image and color data.

The operation of the vehicle periphery monitoring device will be described.

The sensor device 3 outputs a sound wave, grasps a delay time between the sound wave reflected from the obstacle and returned to the sensor device 3 again, and measures the distance to the obstacle. The sensor device 3 outputs information on the detected distance between the vehicle and the obstacle to the sensor signal acquisition processing device 11 of the vehicle video processing device 1.

The sensor signal acquisition processing device 11 outputs this signal to the arithmetic processing device 12, and the arithmetic processing device 12 calculates the distance between the vehicle and the obstacle based on the signal from each sensor device 3, Image data in which obstacles are arranged around the vehicle shape read from the storage device 13 is generated.

At this time, if the sensor device 3 is a detection device using sound waves, the sensor device (1) shown in FIG.
Based on the detection signals of (10) to (10), the shortest distance from the sensor device 3 to the obstacle can be grasped in a certain section where the sound wave of each sensor device reaches. Now, assuming that A can be grasped as the shortest distance from the information of the sensor device (1), as shown in FIG. 2 (b), in a certain section where the sound wave of the sensor device (1) reaches, a position separated by A from the vehicle. Then, an image in which an obstacle ((1) -1) exists along the outer shape of the vehicle is generated. Also, if the shortest distance is grasped as B, B is set along the outer shape of the vehicle in this fixed section.
An image in which an obstacle ((1) -2) is present only at a distance is generated. Similarly, by obtaining the shortest distance from the information of each of the sensor devices (2) to (10) and generating an image of the obstacle on the image of the vehicle shape, obtaining the image data of FIG. Can be.

The arithmetic processing unit 12 outputs the generated image data to the display control unit 14. The display control device 14 generates an NTSC signal or an RGB signal from the image data, or generates a direct control signal under the control of the LCD driver, and displays the image of FIG.

As described above, this vehicle periphery monitoring device detects the distance between the vehicle and the obstacle by using a relatively low-cost clearance sonar or sound wave detection device, and determines the positional relationship between the vehicle and the obstacle in real time. Can be displayed.
By looking at this display, the driver can avoid contact between the vehicle and an obstacle and ensure safety around the vehicle.

(Second Embodiment) The vehicle periphery monitoring apparatus according to the second embodiment has a function of setting the color and shape of a vehicle to be displayed and the color of an obstacle.

In this apparatus, as shown in FIG. 3, a vehicle color processing file is stored in the storage device 13 of the vehicular image processing apparatus shown in FIG.
102, car shape file 103 and obstacle color file 10
4 is stored in advance. The car color file 102 is a file including data on the color of the vehicle among the display contents 101 displayed on the display unit 2. The car shape file 103 is a file containing the data on the shape of the vehicle among the display contents 101. The obstacle coloring file 104 is a file that includes data of a color for displaying an obstacle in the display contents 101.

When generating image data, the arithmetic processing unit 12 selects a vehicle shape, a color, and an obstacle color from each file from the storage device 13 and uses the shape data and the color data to determine the vehicle and the obstacle. Image data indicating the distance from the image data.

The display unit 2 displays the display content 101 reflecting the shape and color of the vehicle and the color of the obstacle selected by the processing unit 12.

As described above, in this vehicle periphery monitoring device,
A vehicle having a shape and color close to the actual vehicle can be displayed on the display unit, and the color of the obstacle can be displayed differently from the color of the vehicle. Therefore, the distinction between the vehicle and the obstacle becomes clear on the display screen.

Further, by adding the function of setting the shape and color of the vehicle to the vehicle periphery monitoring device, the user can freely set the shape and color of the vehicle. Therefore, this device can be used as a versatile device without depending on a specific vehicle type.

A vehicle periphery monitoring device which mounts a plurality of cameras on a vehicle as a sensor device and generates and displays a monochrome image indicating a distance relationship between the vehicle and an obstacle from images of the plurality of cameras, and a monitoring camera In a device or the like that displays a monochrome image, the difference between the vehicle and other devices can be clarified by coloring the vehicle to be displayed by applying the technology of this embodiment.

(Third Embodiment) The vehicle periphery monitoring device of the third embodiment displays the positional relationship between the vehicle and an obstacle in conjunction with the movement of the reverse gear of the vehicle.

In this apparatus, as shown in FIG. 4, the vehicular image processing apparatus 1 acquires gear information set for the transmission from the transmission control unit 4 and detects that the transmission has entered the reverse gear. The reverse gear detection device 15 is provided. Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment (FIG. 1).

In this device, when the reverse gear detecting device 15 of the image processing device 1 for a vehicle receives a signal from the transmission control unit 4 and detects that the transmission is set to the reverse gear, the detection signal is output. Is output to the display control device 14. The display control device 14 executes display control based on the data input from the arithmetic processing device 12, on condition that the setting of the reverse gear is detected by the reverse gear detection device 15, and determines the positional relationship between the vehicle and the obstacle. The displayed image is displayed on the display unit 2.

As described above, in this vehicle periphery monitoring device,
Set certain conditions for the display of the positional relationship between the vehicle and obstacles,
Only when the condition is met, the display is displayed on the display unit. Therefore, the display unit used for navigation and the like can be used for the display unit of the vehicle periphery monitoring device, and the display of the navigation is normally continued, and when the vehicle moves backwards and parks, the display unit may be used. Can be displayed only when it is necessary to grasp the information.

Here, the case where the reverse gear is set in the transmission is shown as an example of the display condition of the vehicle periphery monitoring device, but when the reverse light is turned on, the vehicle is linked with the reverse gear. The display of the positional relationship with the obstacle may be started. In addition, in addition to the operation of the user from the operation unit, when the vehicle and the obstacle approach within a certain distance, or the user displays the positional relationship between the vehicle and the obstacle from the operation unit. The display mode may be set, and when the vehicle and the obstacle approach each other within a certain distance in this state, the display may be performed in conjunction with the approach. As described above, the display control can be performed by setting the condition according to the purpose.

(Fourth Embodiment) The vehicle periphery monitoring device of the fourth embodiment can change the shooting direction of a camera installed behind a vehicle.

As shown in FIG. 5, this vehicle periphery monitoring device is a camera device 5 for image acquisition installed at the rear of the vehicle.
A camera direction movable mechanism 7 for changing a shooting direction of the camera device 5, a vehicular video processing device 6 for processing a video signal of the camera device 5, and an LC for displaying the processed video signal
A display unit 2 including D and the like, and an operation unit 8 for operating a shooting direction of a camera are provided.

The camera direction movable mechanism 7 has a mechanism such as a motor operated by an electric signal, and changes the direction of the camera device 5 according to a control signal from the vehicle image processing device 6. The operation unit 8 includes a button for performing control for changing a shooting direction of the camera device 5, a joystick, and the like.

The vehicular video processing device 6 includes a camera signal acquisition processing device 61 to which the video signal of the camera device 5 is input, a video processing device 62 for processing the video signal, and a video processing device 62
Display control device, such as an LCD driver, for controlling the display on display unit 2 based on a video signal input from
63 and a camera control device 64 that generates a control signal according to the control of the operation unit 8 and controls the direction of the camera direction movable mechanism 7
And

In this device, the camera device 5 captures an image indicating the positional relationship between the vehicle and the obstacle, and outputs an image signal to the image processing device 1 for a vehicle. The video signal input to the vehicle video processing device 1 is input from the camera signal acquisition processing device 61 to the video processing device 62, which performs necessary shaping processing on the video signal and outputs the video signal to the display control device 63. I do. The display control device 63 converts the video signal into an NTSC signal or an RG
A B signal or a direct control signal under the control of the LCD driver is generated and output to the display unit 2, and an image representing the positional relationship between the vehicle and the obstacle is displayed on the display unit 2.

When the user operates the operation unit 8, the camera control device 64 generates a signal corresponding to the operation and controls the operation of the camera direction movable mechanism 7. The camera direction movable mechanism 7 performs an operation based on the control signal. For example, when the user operates the operation unit 8 to acquire an image in the upward direction, a control signal for shifting the shooting location of the camera device 5 to the upper part is generated, and the upper part image can be acquired. become.

As described above, the vehicle periphery monitoring device is provided with the mechanism for changing the photographing direction of the camera,
It is possible to shoot by pointing the camera to a blind spot existing behind the vehicle. Therefore, it is possible to avoid contact of the vehicle with an obstacle and to ensure safety around the vehicle.

(Fifth Embodiment) The vehicle periphery monitoring device of the fifth embodiment can record an image photographed by a camera.

As shown in FIG. 6, the vehicle periphery monitoring device includes a storage device 65 for recording and storing images in the vehicle image processing device 6. Recording and reproduction of the video in the storage device 65 are performed according to an operation from the operation unit 8. Other configurations are the same as those of the fourth embodiment (FIG. 5).

In this device, when the user instructs recording of a video from the operation unit 8, the video processing device 62 of the vehicular video processing device 6, which receives the instruction from the operation unit 8, controls the display of the generated video signal. In addition to outputting to the device 63, the storage device 65
To record. Therefore, the image displayed from the display unit 2 is also recorded in the storage device 65. When receiving a signal instructing a reproduction process from the operation unit 8, the video processing device 62 reads the video signal recorded in the recording device 65 and outputs the video signal to the display control device 63. The display controller 63 generates an NTSC signal or an RGB signal from the video signal,
A direct control signal generated by the driver control is generated and output to the display unit 2, and as a result, a reproduced video is displayed on the display unit 2.

As described above, since the vehicle periphery monitoring device records the displayed image in the memory or the like, when a collision accident with an obstacle occurs, the image is analyzed to determine the cause of the accident. It becomes possible to do. It should be noted that the same configuration as that of this embodiment can be provided in the vehicle periphery monitoring devices of the first to fourth embodiments.

(Sixth Embodiment) The vehicle periphery monitoring device of the sixth embodiment has a function of outputting a recorded video to an external device.

As shown in FIG. 7, in this vehicle periphery monitoring device, the vehicle video processing device 6 includes an external device connection interface 66 that interfaces with the external connection device 9. The video processing device 62 outputs the video signal read from the storage device 65 to the externally connected device 9 through the external device connection interface 66. Other configuration is 5th
There is no difference from the embodiment.

In this device, the externally connected device 9 outputs a signal requesting the recorded video using the externally connected device interface 66. This request signal is input to the video processing device 62 via the external device connection interface 66. Upon receiving the request signal, the video processing device 62 reads the recorded video from the storage device 65 and outputs the read video to the externally connected device 9 via the externally connected device interface 66.

As described above, since the vehicle periphery monitoring device has the function of outputting the stored image to the outside, in the event that the vehicle comes into contact with an obstacle or the like, the recorded image is transmitted to the external connection device. To investigate the cause of the accident externally.

[0047]

As is clear from the above description, the vehicle periphery monitoring device of the present invention can display the positional relationship between a vehicle and an obstacle in real time using a clearance sonar, a sound wave detection device, or the like. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the vehicle from contacting an obstacle beforehand and to ensure safety around the vehicle.

Also, by providing a function of changing and setting the shape and color of the displayed vehicle image and the color of the obstacle, the difference between the vehicle and the obstacle can be clearly displayed. In addition, the function of setting the shape and color of the vehicle makes it possible to provide a device having versatility without depending on the vehicle type.

Also, a certain condition is provided for the display indicating the positional relationship between the vehicle and the obstacle, and the display is performed only when the condition is satisfied, so that the display unit used for navigation or the like is displayed. It can be diverted to
That is, the display unit normally keeps displaying the navigation and the like, and only when the condition is met (for example, only when it is necessary to grasp the obstacle such as parking behind the vehicle, etc.) between the vehicle and the obstacle. The positional relationship is displayed.

Further, by providing a mechanism for changing the photographing direction of the camera, it is possible to aim the camera at a blind spot located behind the vehicle, thereby preventing the vehicle from contacting an obstacle, and The safety of the surroundings can be ensured.

Further, by recording the displayed image in a memory or the like, it is possible to use the recorded image for analyzing the cause such as when the vehicle comes into contact with an obstacle.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a vehicle periphery monitoring device according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a method for generating a distance image according to the first embodiment;

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a display system of a vehicle periphery monitoring device according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a vehicle periphery monitoring device according to a third embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a vehicle periphery monitoring device according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a vehicle periphery monitoring device according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a vehicle periphery monitoring device according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1, 6 Vehicle image processing device 2 Display unit 3 Sensor device 4 Transmission control unit 5 Camera device 6 Vehicle peripheral monitoring device 7 Camera direction movable mechanism 8 Operation unit 9 External connection device 11 Sensor signal acquisition processing device 12 Arithmetic processing device 13 Storage Device 14, 63 Display control device 15 Reverse gear detection device 61 Camera signal processing device 62 Video processing device 64 Camera control device 65 Storage device 66 External device connection interface 101 Display contents 102 Car color file 103 Car shape file 104 Obstacle Color scheme file

──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) B60R 21/00 626 B60R 21/00 626G 1/00 1/00 B G06T 1/00 330 G06T 1/00 330B G08G 1/16 G08G 1/16 C F term (reference) 5B057 AA16 AA19 BA05 BA11 BA24 CC03 CH01 CH11 DA07 DA16 DB06 5H180 CC04 CC11 LL01 LL02

Claims (17)

[Claims] 1. A vehicle periphery monitoring device mounted on a vehicle and displaying a positional relationship between the vehicle and an object existing around the vehicle, a plurality of sensors detecting an object existing around the vehicle, and information of the sensors Video processing means for generating image data representing a positional relationship between a vehicle and the object based on the image data; and display means for displaying a positional relationship between the vehicle and an object existing around the vehicle based on the generated image data. A vehicle periphery monitoring device, characterized in that: 2. The vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 1, wherein the sensor emits a sound wave or an ultrasonic wave, and detects a reflected wave from an object existing around the vehicle. 3. The image processing means generates image data including a vehicle graphic and an obstacle graphic as the image data, and determines an interval between the vehicle graphic and the obstacle graphic by the sensor. The vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 1, wherein the setting is performed based on the distance detected by the vehicle. 4. The vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 3, wherein the image processing unit arranges different colors in the graphic of the vehicle and the graphic of the obstacle. 5. The image processing means includes a vehicle color file in which data of a plurality of colors to be applied to the vehicle is recorded, and selects a color to be colored on the figure of the vehicle from the vehicle color file. The vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 4, wherein: 6. The vehicle monitoring apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the image processing unit colors a color selected by the user from the vehicle color file to the figure of the vehicle. 7. The image processing means includes a vehicle shape file in which graphic data of a plurality of vehicles is recorded, and selects the vehicle graphic to be included in the image data from the vehicle shape file. The vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 3. 8. The vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 7, wherein the image processing unit includes, in the image data, graphic data of a vehicle selected by a user from the vehicle shape file. 9. The obstacle processing system according to claim 1, wherein the image processing unit includes an obstacle color scheme file in which data of a plurality of colors to be applied to the obstacle is recorded. The vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 4, wherein the device is selected from a file. 10. The vehicle monitoring apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the image processing unit arranges a color selected by the user from the obstacle color file on the obstacle graphic. 11. The vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 1, wherein the image data generated by the video processing unit is displayed on the display unit only when a predetermined condition is satisfied. 12. The vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 11, wherein the image data is displayed on the display means on condition that the vehicle moves backward. 13. The vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 12, wherein when the shift gear for changing the transmission is set to the reverse gear, the image data is displayed on the display means in conjunction therewith. 14. The vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 12, wherein when the illumination that is turned on when the vehicle travels backward is turned on, the image data is displayed on the display unit in conjunction with the lighting. 15. The vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 11, wherein the image data is displayed on the display means in conjunction with a user operation. 16. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein when the distance between the vehicle and the obstacle detected by the sensor becomes equal to or less than a predetermined value, the image data is displayed on the display means in conjunction therewith. A vehicle periphery monitoring device as described in the above. 17. When a predetermined display mode is set by a user's operation and the distance between the vehicle and an obstacle detected by the sensor becomes less than a certain value,
The vehicle periphery monitoring device according to claim 11, wherein the image data is displayed on the display means in conjunction therewith.