JP6814567B2 - Anti-glare system - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an antiglare system.

When the ambient light from the outside of the vehicle is applied to the eyes of the occupants in the vehicle interior, the occupants become dazzled and the visibility of the occupants deteriorates. Therefore, the vehicle may be equipped with an antiglare device. The antiglare device has a camera that images the occupant and the background, and there is one that determines whether or not the occupant's eyes are irradiated with ambient light based on the image data imaged by the camera and generated (patented). Reference 1). The generated image data is, for example, white and black binarized image data according to a threshold value related to brightness, and when the image data corresponding to the area of the occupant's eyes is white, the occupant's eyes. It is determined that the image is irradiated with ambient light, and the glare is suppressed by an antiglare device.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2013-122756

By the way, the above threshold value is based on the exposure value of the camera, and changes when the exposure value changes. Since it is necessary to detect the ambient light shining on the image target of the camera to determine the exposure value, when the camera is placed in a position where the ambient light can be detected, or when the camera is placed in a position where the ambient light cannot be detected, A sensor that detects ambient light will be provided separately.

An object of the present invention is to provide an antiglare system capable of determining that at least the eyes of an occupant are irradiated with ambient light and having a high degree of freedom in the installation position of the camera.

In order to achieve the above object, in the antiglare system according to the present invention, at least the light emitted from the light emitting element is reflected by the occupant, and the light receiving element receives the light to generate image data including the distance information to the occupant. Distance image camera, a control device that determines the occupant state, which is the occupant's state, based on the image data, and ambient light from the outside of the vehicle that is at least irradiated to the occupant's eyes based on the occupant's state. The distance information is the elapsed time from the time when the light is emitted from the light emitting element to the time when the light receiving element receives the light reflected by the object. is based, the image data includes a plurality of pixel data corresponding to the imaging region have the distance information for each of the pixel data, before Symbol light receiving element, the disturbance light reflected by the occupant The control device determines at least whether or not the ambient light is irradiated to the eyes of the occupant based on the image data, and the antiglare device is reflected by the occupant. When the disturbance light is received, at least the amount of the disturbance light radiated to the eyes of the occupant is reduced , the visor member is provided, and the visor member is moved from the standby position to cause the disturbance. It reduces the amount of light, and in a state where the amount of ambient light is reduced, the position of the tip of the visor member and the boundary between the region where the disturbance light is irradiated and the region where the disturbance light is not irradiated. The angle of the disturbance light is calculated from the relationship with the position in the above, and the visor member is controlled based on the angle of the disturbance light, the position of the eyes of the occupant, and the position of the tip end portion of the visor member. characterized in that it.

In the above anti-glare system, the anti-glare device, in accordance with the angle of front Kigairan light, while maintaining a state of reduced light quantity of the disturbance light, toward the visor member to the standby position It is preferable to move it.

In the antiglare system according to the present invention, the antiglare device is used when at least the ambient light reflected by the eyes of the occupant is received based on the image data including the distance information to the occupant generated by the distance image camera. At least reduces the amount of ambient light emitted to the eyes of the occupant, so that the range image camera can be installed at an arbitrary position where the occupant can take an image, and the degree of freedom in the installation position of the camera can be increased.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an antiglare system according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the antiglare system according to the embodiment. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing image data (without sunlight) generated by a distance image camera. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing image data (with sunlight) generated by a distance image camera. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a positional relationship (before anti-glare) between the distance image camera, the anti-glare device, and the driver. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a positional relationship (after antiglare) between the distance image camera, the antiglare device, and the driver. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a flowchart of the antiglare system according to the embodiment.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the antiglare system according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to this embodiment. In addition, the components in the following embodiments include those that can be easily assumed by those skilled in the art or those that are substantially the same. In addition, the components in the following embodiments can be omitted, replaced, or changed in various ways without departing from the gist of the invention.

[Embodiment]
The antiglare system according to the embodiment will be described. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an antiglare system according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the antiglare system according to the embodiment. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing image data (without sunlight) generated by a distance image camera. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing image data (with sunlight) generated by a distance image camera. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a positional relationship (before anti-glare) between the distance image camera, the anti-glare device, and the driver. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a positional relationship (after antiglare) between the distance image camera, the antiglare device, and the driver. In FIGS. 5 and 6, the horizontal direction is the x-coordinate and the vertical direction is the y-coordinate. Here, the X direction of FIGS. 1, 3 and 4 is the front-rear direction of the vehicle 100 in the present embodiment. The Y direction is the width direction of the vehicle 100 in the present embodiment, is orthogonal to the front-rear direction, and is the width direction of the driver 200 seated on the driver seat 104. The Z direction is the vertical direction of the vehicle 100 in the present embodiment, and is a direction orthogonal to the front-rear direction and the width direction. Further, FIG. 1 (including FIGS. 5 and 6 described later) schematically shows a passenger compartment and a driver.

As shown in FIG. 1, the antiglare system 1 according to the present embodiment is mounted on, for example, the vehicle 100, and the ambient light emitted from the outside of the vehicle 100 into the vehicle interior S, for example, the sunlight G. Is irradiated to the occupants in the passenger compartment S, for example, the eyes 203 of the driver 200, and therefore becomes dazzling. In this case, the antiglare device 4 reduces the amount of sunlight G irradiated to the eyes 203 of the driver 200. Is what you do. The antiglare system 1 includes a distance image camera 2, a control device 3, and an antiglare device 4. Note that the ambient light is not limited to sunlight G as long as it is light that makes the occupant dazzle when it is irradiated to the eyes of the occupant. Further, the occupant is not limited to the driver 200, and may be a passenger seated in the passenger seat or the rear seat.

Here, the vehicle interior S of the vehicle 100 is composed of at least a vehicle ceiling 101 and a front window 102, and a dashboard 103 and a driver seat 104 are arranged. The vehicle ceiling 101 is located above the seated driver 200, which is seated on the driver seat 104, and the front window 102 is connected to the front window 102 from the front end. The front window 102 secures the front view of the vehicle 100 of the seated driver 200, and is made of, for example, transparent glass. The dashboard 103 is arranged in the passenger compartment S in the front direction of the seated driver 200, and the instrument panel 105 is provided on the driver seat 104 side. The instrument panel 105 is visually recognized by displaying the vehicle state of the vehicle 100 to the seated driver 200, and is provided with various instruments. A steering wheel 107 operated by the driver 200 is rotatably supported below the instrument panel 105 of the dashboard 103 via a support member 106. The driver seat 104 is for the driver 200 to sit on, and is arranged at a position in the vehicle interior S facing the dashboard 103 in the front-rear direction.

The distance image camera 2 includes distance information in the image data generated by imaging an object. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the distance image camera 2 in the present embodiment is attached to the upper side of the support member 106, and the target, that is, the head 201 (face 202) of the driver 200 who is at least the occupant and the head 201 (face 202). The driver seat 104 is imaged to generate image data IDs (ID1, ID2 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4) including the driver 200 and the driver seat 104. The range image camera 2 includes a light emitting element 21 and a light receiving element 22, and the light emitted from the light emitting element 21 is targeted. In the present embodiment, it is reflected and reflected by at least the driver 200 and the driver seat 104, which are occupants. Light is received by the light receiving element 22. The light emitting element 21 is a laser that emits light having a wavelength that the light receiving element 22 can receive, for example, near infrared rays, toward the driver 200 and the driver seat 104, which are passengers. The light receiving element 22 receives the light (reflected light emitting element light) emitted from the light emitting element 21 reflected by the driver 200 and the driver seat 104. The light receiving element 22 can also receive sunlight G. Since the light receiving element 22 in the present embodiment can receive the near infrared rays contained in the sunlight G, it can receive the sunlight G. Therefore, the light receiving element 22 also receives the sunlight G (reflected sunlight) reflected by the driver 200 and the driver seat 104. The distance image camera 2 has an image data generation unit (not shown), and is based on an image data ID including distance information based on a light receiving signal output from the light receiving element 22, for example, from a plurality of pixel data corresponding to an imaging region. An image data ID that is configured and has distance information for each pixel data is generated. Here, the distance information in the present embodiment expresses whether the distance of the target from the light receiving element 22 is short or far by the luminance information. For example, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the light receiving element 22 is the target. If is close to, it is white, and as it gets farther, it changes toward black, that is, it is information on the shade of black and white. The distance image camera 2 is electrically connected to the control device 3, and the generated image data is output to the control device 3.

The control device 3 determines the occupant state, which is the occupant state, based on the image data generated by the distance image camera 2. Here, the occupant state in the present embodiment means a state in which the eyes 203 of the driver 200 are irradiated with sunlight G, that is, a state in which the driver 200 is dazzled by the sunlight G. Further, the control device 3 controls the position of the visor member 41 described later of the antiglare device 4. The control device 3 has a known hardware configuration, outputs a control signal to the antiglare device 4 based on an image signal from the range image camera 2, and has an image data processing unit 31 as a function. And an antiglare device control unit 32.

The image data processing unit 31 determines whether or not at least the eyes of the occupant are irradiated with ambient light based on the image data ID. The image data processing unit 31 in the present embodiment identifies the area corresponding to the second eye 203 of the driver 200 from the image data, and based on the distance information in the pixel data of the area corresponding to the two eyes 203, two It is determined whether or not the eyes 203 are irradiated with sunlight G. When the driver 200, the driver seat 104, and the like are not irradiated with sunlight G, the image data ID 1 generated by the distance image camera 2 receives the reflected light emitting element light from the light receiving element 22 as shown in FIG. It is displayed in black and white shades based on the time (elapsed time from the time of emission from the light emitting element 21). Therefore, the image data ID 1 is displayed thinner (closer to white) than the driver seat 104 because the position of the driver 200 when viewed from the distance image camera 2 is in front of, that is, closer to the driver seat 104. On the other hand, when the sunlight G irradiates the driver 200 such as the face 202 including the eyes 203 and a part of the driver seat 104, the image data ID 2 generated by the distance image camera 2 is as shown in FIG. In addition, since the light receiving element 22 always receives the reflected sunlight, the light receiving element 22 receives the reflected sunlight in a shorter time than the time for receiving the reflected light emitting element light. Therefore, the image data ID 2 is displayed even thinner (closer to white) than when the sunlight G is not applied to the driver 200, the driver seat 104, and the like. That is, in the image data processing unit 31, the area corresponding to the eye 203 in the image data ID when the eye 203 is irradiated with the sunlight G is the image data ID when the eye 203 is not irradiated with the sunlight G. The eye 203 is irradiated with sunlight G based on having distance information that the distance from the light receiving element 22 is closer than the region corresponding to the eye 203 in, that is, being displayed lightly (close to white). Judge whether or not.

Further, the image data processing unit 31 also moves the visor member 41 toward the standby position according to the angle of the disturbance light in the light amount reduction state in which the light amount of the disturbance light is reduced. The image data processing unit 31 in the present embodiment is based on the position of the tip portion 41a of the visor member 41 and the position at the boundary between the region irradiated with sunlight G and the region not irradiated with sunlight G in the light amount reduced state. Based on the calculated angle θ of the sunlight G, the position of the tip portion 41a of the visor member 41 is returned to a position where the state in which the sunlight G is not irradiated to the eyes 203 can be maintained. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the position of the light receiving element 22 of the distance image camera 2 is set as a reference point (0,0) in the xy coordinates formed by a plane including the front-rear direction and the up-down direction in the passenger compartment S. The position of 203 is defined as A (Ax, Ay), the position of the tip portion 41a of the visor member 41 is defined as B (Bx, By), and the region of the driver seat 104 where sunlight G is irradiated and the region where sunlight G is not irradiated Let the position of the boundary 104a be C (Cx, Cy). As shown in FIG. 5, when the visor member 41 is in the standby position, the sunlight G may irradiate the eyes 203 depending on the angle θ of the sunlight G. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 6, when the visor member 41 protrudes from the standby position with respect to the front window 102 and the sunlight G is not irradiated to the eyes 203, B (Bx, By) is displayed. From the relationship with C (Cx, Cy), the angle θ of sunlight G can be calculated (θ = tan ^-1 (By−Cy) / (Cx−Bx)). Based on the angle θ of the sunlight G, A (Ax, Ay), and B (Bx, By), it is calculated how far the visor member 41 should be returned to irradiate the eyes 203 with the sunlight G. can do. The control device 3 is electrically connected to the antiglare device 4, and a control signal for controlling the antiglare device 4 is output to the antiglare device 4.

The antiglare device control unit 32 controls the antiglare device 4. When the image data processing unit 31 determines that the eyes 203 are irradiated with sunlight G, the antiglare device control unit 32 outputs a control signal to the antiglare device 4 to drive and control the drive unit 42. As a result, the visor member 41 is moved from the standby position toward the front window 102. Further, the antiglare device control unit 32 outputs a control signal to the antiglare device 4 based on the angle θ of the sunlight G in a state where the sunlight G is not irradiated on the eyes 203 by the image data processing unit 31. Then, by driving and controlling the drive unit 42, the visor member 41 is moved toward the standby position, and the visor member 41 is returned to a position where the state in which the sunlight G is not irradiated to the eyes 203 can be maintained.

The antiglare device 4 reduces the amount of ambient light from the outside of the vehicle 100 that is irradiated to the eyes of the occupant at least based on the occupant state. The anti-glare device 4 in the present embodiment reduces the glare of the driver 200 by blocking the sunlight G applied to the eyes 203 of the driver 200. The antiglare device 4 is attached to the front window 102 side of the vehicle ceiling 101, and includes a visor member 41 and a drive unit 42. The visor member 41 moves from the antiglare device 4 toward the front window 102 to block the sunlight G from being irradiated into the vehicle interior S, that is, to reduce the amount of sunlight G. The visor member 41 is formed of, for example, a synthetic resin having a light-shielding property, and the position of the tip portion 41a changes according to the amount of movement from the standby position toward the front window 102 with respect to the driver 200. Adjust the irradiation position of sunlight G. Specifically, the visor member 41 moves the irradiation position of the sunlight G downward as the amount of movement increases. The drive unit 42 projects the visor member 41 from the antiglare device 4, and is an actuator such as a motor. The drive unit 42 projects the visor member 41 from the standby position with respect to the front window 102 based on the control signal from the control device 3. The antiglare device 4 usually positions the visor member 41 at a standby position close to the vehicle ceiling 101 and does not block the view of the driver 200.

Next, the operation of the antiglare system 1 according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a flowchart of the antiglare system according to the embodiment. The antiglare system 1 repeats the following operations at predetermined control cycles.

First, the light emitting element 21 of the distance image camera 2 emits light (step ST1). Here, the light emitting element 21 emits light toward the driver 200 and the driver seat 104.

Next, the light receiving element 22 of the distance image camera 2 receives light (step ST2). Here, the light receiving element 22 receives only the reflected light emitting element light, or the reflected sunlight and the reflected light emitting element light.

Next, the distance image camera 2 generates an image data ID (step ST3). Here, the image data generation unit of the distance image camera 2 generates an image data ID including the distance information and outputs it to the control device 3.

Next, the control device 3 recognizes the eye 203 (step ST4). Here, the image data processing unit 31 of the control device 3 specifies an area corresponding to the eye 203 of the driver 200 in the image data ID based on the image data ID acquired from the distance image camera 2.

Next, the control device 3 determines whether or not the eyes 203 are irradiated with sunlight G (step ST5). Here, the image data processing unit 31 determines whether or not the two eyes 203 are irradiated with sunlight G based on the distance information in the pixel data forming the region corresponding to the eyes 203.

Next, when the control device 3 determines that the eyes 203 are irradiated with sunlight G (step ST5 Yes), the control device 3 moves the visor member 41 (step ST6). Here, when the antiglare device control unit 32 of the control device 3 determines that the eyes 203 are irradiated with sunlight G, the antiglare device control unit 32 outputs a control signal to the antiglare device 4 and the antiglare device 4 inputs the control signal. Based on the control signal, the visor member 41 in the standby position is moved toward the front window 102. In the antiglare system 1, the control device 3 keeps determining that the eyes 203 are irradiated with sunlight G, so that the antiglare device 4 keeps moving the visor member 41 toward the front window 102.

Further, the control device 3 determines whether the eyes 203 are not irradiated with sunlight G (step ST5 No) and determines whether or not the visor member 41 is in the standby position (step ST7). Here, the control device 3 determines whether the visor member 41 is not irradiating the eyes 203 with sunlight G at the standby position, or the visor member 41 is not irradiating the eyes 203 with sunlight G.

Next, when the control device 3 determines that the visor member 41 is in the standby position (step ST7 Yes), the control device 3 ends the current control cycle and shifts to the next control cycle. That is, when the visor member 41 is in the standby position and the eyes 203 are not irradiated with sunlight G, the control device 3 does not control the antiglare device 4 by the antiglare device control unit 32, and puts the visor member 41 in the standby position. Keep in.

Further, when the control device 3 determines that the visor member 41 is not in the standby position (step ST7 No), the control device 3 calculates the angle θ of the sunlight G (step ST8). Here, in the image data processing unit 31, when the eyes 203 are not irradiated with sunlight G by the visor member 41, the position of the tip portion 41a of the visor member 41 and the sunlight G are irradiated on the driver seat 104. The angle θ of the sunlight G is calculated based on the position of the boundary 104a of the area where the area is exposed and the area where the area is not irradiated.

Next, the control device 3 returns the visor member 41 based on the angle θ of the sunlight G (step ST9). Here, the antiglare device control unit 32 outputs a control signal to the antiglare device 4 based on the angle θ of the sunlight G, and waits for the visor member 41 based on the control signal input by the antiglare device 4. Move towards position. At this time, the antiglare device control unit 32 returns the visor member 41 to a position where the state in which the sunlight G is not irradiated to the eyes 203 can be maintained.

As described above, in the antiglare system 1 according to the present embodiment, the light receiving element 22 is reflected by the eyes 203 of the driver 200 based on the image data ID including the distance information to the driver 200 generated by the distance image camera 2. When the sunlight G is received, the visor member 41 of the antiglare device 4 is moved from the standby position toward the front window 102 to block the sunlight G emitted to the eyes 203 of the driver 200. .. That is, in the antiglare system 1, in order to determine whether or not the eyes 203 are irradiated with sunlight G, the distance information with respect to the reflected light emitting element light from the eyes 203 received by the light receiving element 22 and the reflected sunlight. By comparing with the distance information with respect to, the antiglare device 4 can be driven to reduce the amount of sunlight G. Therefore, unlike the case of a camera that generates image data that does not include distance information, the exposure value is not detected in order to determine whether or not the eyes 203 are irradiated with sunlight G. You will be freed from the restrictions on camera installation due to detection. As a result, the distance image camera 2 can be set at an arbitrary position as long as the driver 200's face 202 can be imaged, and the degree of freedom of the installation position of the distance image camera 2 can be increased.

Further, in the antiglare system 1 according to the present embodiment, since the antiglare device 4 is driven when the two eyes 203 are irradiated with sunlight G, for example, the distance image camera 2 is backlit, that is, the sun. Even if the light G is directly incident on the light receiving element 22, or even if the light receiving element 22 receives the sunlight G reflected by the portion other than the face 202 of the driver 200, the antiglare device 4 is not driven. .. Therefore, when the driver 200 becomes dazzling, the antiglare device 4 can be accurately driven.

Further, in the antiglare system 1 according to the present embodiment, the position of the tip portion 41a of the visor member 41 and the sunlight G are irradiated in a state where the eyes 203 are not irradiated with sunlight G by the antiglare device 4. The visor member 41 up to a position where the state in which the sunlight G is not irradiated to the eye 203 can be maintained according to the angle θ of the sunlight G based on the position at the boundary 104a of the region where the sunlight G is and the region where the sunlight G is not irradiated. The visor member 41 can be set to the optimum position because the visor member 41 is moved toward the standby position, and the visor member 41 blocks the sunlight G irradiating the eyes 203 and limits the forward view of the driver 200. Can be suppressed. Further, when the sunlight G is not irradiated to the eyes 203, the visor member 41 can be returned to the standby position.

The distance image camera 2 in the above embodiment may be an motion detecting means for detecting the motion of the driver 200. In this case, the movement of the driver 200 is detected based on the distance information of the image data generated by the distance image camera 2, and the vehicle 100 is controlled in response to the operation according to the movement. Therefore, since one distance image camera 2 can be used for detecting the operation and for driving the antiglare device 4, space can be saved without providing a plurality of cameras.

Further, the antiglare device 4 in the above embodiment reduces the amount of ambient light by blocking the sunlight G by the visor member 41, but the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the front window 102. The amount of ambient light may be reduced by changing the transmittance of the window.

1 Anti-glare system 2 Distance image camera 21 Light emitting element 22 Light receiving element 3 Control device 31 Image data processing unit 32 Anti-glare device control unit 4 Anti-glare device 41 Visor member 41a Tip 42 Drive unit 100 Vehicle 101 Vehicle ceiling 102 Front window 103 Dashboard 104 Driver seat 105 Instrument panel 106 Support member 107 Steering wheel 200 Driver (occupant)
201 Head 202 Face 203 Eye ID, ID1, ID2 Image data S Car room G Sunlight

Claims (2)

A distance image camera that generates image data including distance information to the occupant by reflecting at least the light emitted from the light emitting element by the occupant and receiving the light by the light receiving element.
Based on the image data, a control device that determines the occupant state, which is the occupant state, and
An antiglare device that reduces the amount of ambient light from the outside of the vehicle that is emitted to the eyes of the occupant based on the occupant state.
With
The distance information is based on the elapsed time from when the light is emitted from the light emitting element until the light receiving element receives the light reflected by the object.
The image data is composed of a plurality of pixel data corresponding to an imaging region, and each pixel data has the distance information.
The light receiving element can receive the disturbance light reflected by the occupant.
Based on the image data, the control device determines at least whether or not the disturbance light is applied to the eyes of the occupant.
The anti-glare device,
If you are receiving the disturbance light reflected by the front Symbol occupant, reducing the quantity of the disturbance light applied to the eyes of at least the occupant,
By having a visor member and moving the visor member from a standby position, the amount of ambient light is reduced.
In a state where the amount of the disturbance light is reduced, the disturbance light is based on the relationship between the position of the tip portion of the visor member and the position at the boundary between the region where the disturbance light is irradiated and the region where the disturbance light is not irradiated. Calculate the angle of
An antiglare system characterized in that the visor member is controlled based on the angle of the ambient light, the position of the eyes of the occupant, and the position of the tip end portion of the visor member . In the antiglare system according to claim 1,
The anti-glare device, before according to the angle of Kigairan light, while maintaining a state of reduced light intensity of the ambient light, an anti-glare system for moving towards the visor member to the standby position.

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