JP2009219000A - Camera device and imaging system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a camera device and an imaging system capable of photographing an image in a range following the movement of a vehicle or complying with a driver's wishes without a large-scale mechanism. <P>SOLUTION: In an on-vehicle camera system 1, a driving section 4 moves a light receiving section 3 which is smaller than the range of an image formed with incident light into a wide-angle lens 2 in parallel with the wide-angle lens 2 so as to determine a range to be photographed and to photograph an image in the range based on information from a traveling sensor section 9, information from a GPS section 10 and map data 6b stored in a storage section 6. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a camera device for photographing a subject and an imaging system provided with the camera device.

  2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, an apparatus has been proposed in which a camera device is attached to a vehicle as a moving body, a situation around the vehicle is photographed, and displayed to a driver or the like through a monitor screen in the vehicle interior.

For example, in the in-vehicle camera control device described in Patent Document 1, an imaging range is determined according to vehicle position information and map information, and the imaging angle of view of the camera is controlled. Further, in the vehicle driving support device described in Patent Document 2, the image acquired by the wide-angle camera and the bird's-eye view image are switched according to the vehicle speed.
JP 2007-288444 A JP 2008-13022 A

  However, in the case of the in-vehicle camera control device described in Patent Document 1, a large-scale mechanism unit is required to change the angle of view of the camera. In addition, there is a problem that the response speed deteriorates because the camera itself is moved.

  In the case of the vehicle driving support device described in Patent Document 2, since a wide range of images obtained by the wide-angle lens are collectively acquired by the light receiving unit, a range that the driver does not need in the acquired image (for example, Image of the sky) is also included, and there is a problem that the resolution of an image in a necessary range is lowered.

  Accordingly, the present invention provides a camera device and an imaging system capable of capturing an image in a range according to a request of a vehicle movement, a driver, or the like without using a large-scale mechanism unit without reducing resolution. The task is to do.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the camera device according to claim 1 includes a lens that collects light from a subject, an imaging unit that converts the light after passing through the lens into an electrical signal and acquires an image, The camera apparatus includes a driving unit that moves the imaging unit with respect to the lens, and the imaging unit is configured to be smaller than a range of light collected by the lens. .

  Hereinafter, a camera device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. Since the camera device according to the embodiment of the present invention includes the driving unit that moves the imaging unit smaller than the range of the light collected by the lens with respect to the lens, the size of the imaging unit can be reduced. In addition, by moving the imaging unit to a position that includes the range that the driving unit wants to capture, only the range that is desired to be captured can be captured without reducing the resolution. Further, since the imaging means is moved, the response speed is faster than when the camera body is moved.

  Further, the driving means may move the imaging means in parallel to the direction in which light enters the lens. By doing in this way, the range of the light which a lens condenses can be made to move freely in an imaging means.

  The lens may be a wide angle lens. By doing in this way, only a necessary range can be imaged even in an image acquired by condensing in a wide range with a wide-angle lens.

  Further, the above-described camera device, a control unit that controls a position where the driving unit moves the imaging unit, and an image processing unit that performs distortion correction on the image acquired by the imaging unit according to the position of the imaging unit. You may comprise the imaging system provided. In this way, the drive unit is controlled by the control unit and moved to a predetermined position, and the image acquired by the imaging unit can be subjected to distortion correction processing according to the position. The correction amount can be set, and an image with little distortion can be taken at any position.

  Further, the apparatus includes a movement information acquisition unit that acquires information about movement of the moving body, and the control unit determines a position to move the imaging unit based on the information about movement of the moving body acquired by the movement information acquisition unit, and driving means May be controlled. By doing in this way, the image according to the movement of a mobile body can be acquired.

  An imaging system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 1, an in-vehicle camera system 1 as an imaging system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a wide-angle lens 2, a light receiving unit 3, a driving unit 4, a control unit 5, a storage unit 6, and an image. The processing unit 7, the display unit 8, the travel sensor unit 9, the GPS unit 10, and the operation input unit 11 are provided and are installed at the front end portion of the vehicle to capture an image mainly in the traveling direction of the vehicle.

  The wide-angle lens 2 is a lens that has optical characteristics with a wide angle of view of, for example, about 180 degrees and can photograph a wide range, and collects light from a subject within the range of angle of view.

  The light receiving unit 3 as an image pickup unit is configured by an image pickup device such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) or a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) sensor, and has a smaller light receiving portion than the range where the wide-angle lens 2 condenses. The light after passing through the wide-angle lens 2 is converted into an electrical signal to acquire (photograph) an image. The light receiving unit 3 is movable in a direction parallel to the direction in which the light of the wide-angle lens 2 is incident as shown in FIG. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the relationship among the movement ranges of the wide-angle lens 2, the light receiving unit 3, and the light receiving unit 3. The light receiving unit 3 is movable so as to cover an image range A formed by light incident on the wide-angle lens 2, which is a range condensed by the wide-angle lens 2.

  The drive unit 4 as drive means moves the light receiving unit 3 in a direction parallel to the direction in which the light from the wide-angle lens 2 is incident. The drive unit 4 is realized by, for example, table movement by a stepping motor and a rotation shaft, movement by a vibration motor, feedback control by a drive unit using a motor and a rotation shaft or electromagnetic force, and a position detection device.

  The control unit 5 as a control means is configured by a microcomputer having a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a memory, and the like, and is stored in the storage unit 6 with information from the traveling sensor unit 9 and information from the GPS unit 10. The imaging range is determined based on the map data 6b, and the movement position coordinate information of the light receiving unit 3 corresponding to the imaging range is output to the driving unit 4. Note that the control unit 5 may output movement position coordinate information corresponding to the imaging range designated by the operation input unit 11. Further, the image correction data 6 a corresponding to the movement position coordinate information of the light receiving unit 3 is acquired from the storage unit 6 and output to the image processing unit 7.

  The storage unit 6 is composed of a semiconductor memory, a hard disk, an optical disk, or the like, and is obtained from image correction data 6a used for distortion correction processing by an image processing unit 7 described later, a travel sensor unit 9 and a GPS unit 10 described later, and the like. Stored is map data 6b for collation with the vehicle position. Here, the image correction data 6a is data in which the coordinates in the image range A formed by the light incident on the wide-angle lens 2 are associated with the correction parameters. In general, distortion caused by a wide-angle lens occurs concentrically, and increases according to the distance from the optical center. The correction parameter is a parameter for correcting this distortion. The correction parameters are determined in advance according to experiments, simulations, experiences, and the like.

  The image processing unit 7 serving as an image processing unit receives an image obtained by receiving the light received by the light receiving unit 3 and converting it into an electrical signal, based on image correction data 6 a input from the storage unit 6 via the control unit 5. A distortion correction process is performed and output to the display unit 8. Further, the image processing unit 7 may perform dynamic range correction suitable for incident light and the like as processing for suppressing image collapse when strong light is incident.

  The display unit 8 is configured by a liquid crystal display or the like, and displays an image that has been subjected to distortion correction processing by the image processing unit 7.

  The travel sensor unit 9 as movement information acquisition means is based on operation information such as winker, brake, steering wheel operation, etc. in the vehicle, travel information such as front / rear / left / right acceleration information such as vehicle stop, right turn, left turn, etc. Information on the movement of the vehicle such as the line-of-sight information is acquired and output to the control unit 5.

  The GPS unit 10 as movement information acquisition means calculates the latitude and longitude of the own vehicle using a GPS (Global Positioning System) satellite and outputs the calculated latitude and longitude to the control unit 5.

  The operation input unit 11 includes input means such as a button for a user such as a driver to operate the in-vehicle camera system 1, and outputs an operation signal of the button or the like to the control unit 5. As described above, the operation input unit 11 also includes buttons and the like for manually specifying an imaging range.

  The above-described wide-angle lens 2, the light receiving unit 3, and the driving unit 4 constitute a camera device 20.

  Next, the shooting range switching operation of the above-described in-vehicle camera system 1 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The flowchart shown in FIG. 3 is configured by a program recorded in the memory in the control unit 5 and is executed by the CPU in the control unit 5.

  First, in step S1, the information from the traveling sensor unit 9 and the information from the GPS unit 10 and the map data 6b stored in the storage unit 6 are read, and the process proceeds to step S2.

  Next, in step S2, an imaging range is determined based on the information from the traveling sensor unit 9 and the information from the GPS unit 10 read in step S1, and the map data 6b stored in the storage unit 6, and step S3. Proceed to The shooting range is determined based on information from the traveling sensor unit 9 such as, for example, left and right when stopped near an intersection, or forward when traveling straight ahead at a certain speed or higher. Or you may make it image | photograph a destination, a traffic light, a sign, etc. based on the information of the GPS part 10, and the map data 6b.

  Next, in step S <b> 3, the information on the photographing range determined in step S <b> 2 is converted into moving position coordinate information for moving the light receiving unit 3 and output to the driving unit 4. In order to move the image range A formed by the light incident on the wide-angle lens 2 as shown in FIG. 2, the light receiving unit 3 moves the two-dimensional coordinate information in the X and Y directions set in the range to the moving position. The drive unit 4 acquires the coordinate information and moves the light receiving unit 3.

  Next, in step S4, the correction parameter corresponding to the imaging range determined in step S2 is read from the image correction data 6a, and the process proceeds to step S5.

  Next, in step S5, the correction parameter read in step S4 is output to the image processing unit 7, and the process returns to step S1.

  According to the present embodiment, in the in-vehicle camera system 1, the light receiving unit 4 smaller than the image range A formed by the incident light of the wide-angle lens 2 is stored with information from the traveling sensor unit 9 and information from the GPS unit 10. Based on the map data 6b stored in the unit 6, the driving unit 4 moves the light receiving unit 3 in parallel with the wide-angle lens 2 so as to determine a shooting range and take a picture of the range, so only the range to be shot is taken. In addition, since all the pixels of the light receiving unit 3 can be used, a necessary range can be photographed without reducing the resolution.

  In addition, since the light receiving unit 3 is moved, the response speed is faster than the movement of the camera body, so that the followability to the operation of the vehicle or the like is improved. Furthermore, it is possible to attach the camera device itself at a position where it is difficult to adjust the angle of view by moving the camera device itself.

  In addition, since the image processing unit 7 performs distortion correction processing with correction parameters according to the position of the light receiving unit 3, a correction amount can be set according to the position, and an image with little distortion can be taken at any position. can do.

  In the embodiment described above, the wide-angle lens 2 is used, but a normal lens (a lens having a narrower angle of view than the wide-angle lens) may be used.

  In the above-described embodiment, the vehicle-mounted camera system 1 has been described. However, the present invention can be applied to, for example, a security monitoring camera. For example, when the light receiving unit 3 is moved so as to sequentially scan the image range formed by the wide-angle lens 2 and a human or the like is detected by an infrared sensor or the like, the light receiving unit 3 is synchronized with the detected movement of the human or the like. It can be used as moving.

  The range in which the light receiving unit 3 is moved may be wider than the range of the image formed by the light incident on the wide-angle lens 2. In this way, for example, when very strong light is incident, the light can be retracted outside the range of the light incident on the wide-angle lens 2, so that the light receiving unit 3 is protected without the need for additional members such as a shutter. be able to.

  According to the embodiment described above, the following camera device can be obtained.

(Supplementary note) In the camera device 20 including the wide-angle lens 2 that collects light from the subject, and the light-receiving unit 3 that acquires the image by converting the light after passing through the wide-angle lens 2 into an electrical signal.
A driving unit 4 for moving the light receiving unit 3 with respect to the wide-angle lens 2;
The camera device 20, wherein the light receiving unit 3 is configured to be smaller than an image range A formed by being condensed by the wide-angle lens 2.

  According to the camera device 20, the size of the light receiving unit 3 can be reduced, and the resolution of only the range to be photographed can be reduced by moving the light receiving unit 3 to a position including the range to be photographed by the driving unit 4. You can shoot without Further, since the light receiving unit 3 is moved, the response speed is faster than when the camera body is moved.

  In addition, the Example mentioned above only showed the typical form of this invention, and this invention is not limited to an Example. That is, various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

It is a block diagram of the vehicle-mounted camera system concerning one Example of this invention. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a relationship among movement ranges of the wide-angle lens 2, the light receiving unit 3, and the light receiving unit 3. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an imaging range switching operation of the in-vehicle camera system shown in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

1 In-vehicle camera system (imaging system)
2 Wide-angle lens (lens)
3 Light receiving part (imaging means)
4 Drive unit (drive means)
5 Control unit (control means)
7 Image processing unit (image processing means)
9 Travel sensor unit (movement information acquisition means)
10 GPS unit (movement information acquisition means)
20 Camera device

Claims (5)

In a camera apparatus comprising: a lens that collects light from a subject; and an imaging unit that acquires an image by converting the light that has passed through the lens into an electrical signal;
Drive means for moving the imaging means relative to the lens;
The camera apparatus, wherein the imaging unit is configured to be smaller than a range of light collected by the lens.   The camera device according to claim 1, wherein the driving unit moves the imaging unit in parallel to a direction in which light enters the lens.   The camera device according to claim 1, wherein the lens is a wide-angle lens. The camera device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
Control means for controlling the position at which the driving means moves the imaging means;
Image processing means for performing distortion correction according to the position of the imaging means on the image acquired by the imaging means;
An imaging system comprising: Comprising movement information acquisition means for acquiring information relating to movement of the moving object;
5. The control unit according to claim 4, wherein the control unit determines a position to move the imaging unit based on information about movement of the moving body acquired by the movement information acquisition unit, and controls the driving unit. Imaging system.

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