Patent Application
20120262578
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is generally relates to a vehicular around-view driving monitor and recorder, and more particularly to a configuration that comprises a plurality of wide-angle cameras, a real-time image monitoring and recording/playing unit, a visual image operation system, and a display device, which enables a real-time processing and algorithmic operation on around-view raw image data shot by wide-angle cameras to provide the drivers with better safety, correct and convenient visual assistance and driving judgment. Alternatively, the processed images could be selected to display in a bird-view mode to let drivers have an additional circumferential reference. Besides, the original images of surrounding environment and driving data of the time point whenever a traffic accident occurs can be genuinely stored and replayed without any illegal alteration and/or modification. Therefore, the present invention is applicable to drivers' visual assistance and the recovery of traffic evidence of various types of vehicles.
2. Description of Related Art
Due to the speedy progress of technology, vehicles are quite popularly to be installed with a back sensor or display unit to show the back side during driving or parking for providing the driver a better visual assistance and judgment to protect the car from any undesired damage or collision.
Nowadays, advanced vehicles are also provided with an Around-View Monitor (AVM), wherein the wide-angle cameras are established at different locations to collect full view images of 360-degree around the vehicle and to help or hint the driver to identify any potential obstacle. However, the existing AVM only displays the images taken by the cameras on a display screen and it does not provide a function of real-time recording of the image and/or does not allow those images to be downloaded for replaying the process or any investigation of fact related to the traffic accident which the driver involved in.
Thus, in view of the above problems, the present invention aims to provide a vehicular around-view driving monitor and recorder, which is capable of real-time storage, processing and algorithmic operation on around-view raw images to improve the safety of driver and to reduce the inconvenience occurred in a traffic accident and that of evidence investigation.
The primary objective of the present invention is to provide a vehicular around-view driving monitor and recorder, which comprises a configuration of a plurality of wide-angle cameras, a real-time image monitoring and recording/playing unit, a visual image operation system, and a display device, wherein the visual image operation system comprises a raw image acquisition unit, a visual image processing unit, and a display processing unit, whereby the visual image operation system is able to carry out real-time processing and algorithmic operation on those raw images taken by the plurality of wide-angle cameras to enhance a safer driving environment, a correct and convenient visual driving assistance, and a real-time display of the around-view image.
Another objective of the present invention is to provide a vehicular around-view driving monitor and recorder, which comprises a real-time image monitoring and recording/playing unit to reserve the raw images taken by wide-angle cameras configured around the vehicle so as to allow genuine recovery of the true visual evidence without any illegal alteration and/or modification, and to provide an undoubted proof for investigation of any case which the driver is involved in.
A further objective of the present invention is to provide a vehicular around-view driving monitor and recorder, which performs a real-time visual processing including data correction toward the twisted raw images, images overlapping and a combination of algorithmic operation via the visual image operation system to convert those raw images shot from cameras into normal ones shown on the display and to fit the driver's visual practice and driving habit. And, that feature provides some visual effects for the driver to have a better spatial recognition and a more realistic distance ratio.
The present invention provides a vehicular around-view driving monitor and recorder, which comprises a plurality of wide-angle cameras, a real-time image monitoring and recording/playing unit, a visual image operation system, and a display device. The plurality of wide-angle cameras is configured around a vehicle to collect round-view raw images which cover certain angles of different directions around the said vehicle. The real-time image monitoring and recording/playing unit is connected to the plurality of wide-angle cameras for real-time storing of the round-view raw images shot by the wide-angle cameras. The visual image operation system is also connected to the said plurality of wide-angle cameras to obtain those raw images fed by the wide-angle cameras. The visual image operation system comprises a raw image acquisition unit, a visual image processing unit, and a display processing unit. The raw image acquisition unit collects and temporarily stores the raw images shot by the wide-angle cameras and is forward connected by the visual image processing unit which is then performing the function of real-time visual data processing and algorithmic operation including data correction toward the twisted raw images, image overlapping and a combination of algorithmic operation to convert those raw images into round-view ones shown on the display which fits the driver's visual practice and driving habit. Those processed visual images are then transmitted and integrated at the display processing unit to form as fully round-view images ready to be viewed on the display device. Finally, the display device, configured onboard the vehicle and connected to the display processing unit, presents the visual assistance and plays an important role of driving reference to provide a driver-friendly, correct and convenient configuration to enhance a better driving safety and reserve a recorded circumferential evidence during the driving process.
To enable a further understanding of the said objectives and the technological methods of the invention herein, the brief description of the drawings below is followed by the detailed description of the preferred embodiments.
10—wide-angle camera
101—raw image
20—real-time image monitoring and recording/playing unit
21—memory
22—transmission port
30—visual image operation system
31—raw image acquisition unit
32—visual image processing unit
321—visual image
33—display processing unit
40—display device
Please refer to
The real-time image monitoring and recording/playing unit 20 may further comprise a memory 21, which includes a hard disk drive and/or a memory card. The real-time image monitoring and recording/playing unit 20 may further comprise a transmission port 22, which allows output or downloading of raw image data for later official use. The transmission port 22 includes universal serial bus (USB), high speed serial bus (such as IEEE-1394), Integrated Device Electronics (IDE), Small Computer System Interface (SCSI), and Serial Advanced Technology Attachment (SATA). The raw image acquisition unit 31 comprises random access memory (RAM), for temporal storage of the raw images 101, which includes dynamic random access memory (DRAM) or static random access memory (SRAM). The visual image processing unit 32 provides real-time visual data processing including distortion correction, image overlapping, and a combination of algorithmic operations of the raw images 101 in order to convert the raw images suitable for driver's visual practice. The visual image can be displayed in a bird-view mode depending on the driver's need. The display device 40 can adopt an Around View Monitor (AVM).
Referring to
Therefore, the present invention is applicable to drivers' visual assistance, prevention of traffic accident and/or collision and the recovery of traffic evidence of various types of vehicles during the driving process.
