Vehicular vision system with windshield mounted camera

Abstract
A method for providing image processing for a plurality of vehicular driving assist systems includes mounting a camera module at a portion of an in-cabin side of a windshield of a vehicle. The camera module houses a camera, a circuit board, at least one electrical connector and an image processor. The camera is electrically connected to circuitry of the circuit board via a flexible electrical connection. With the camera module mounted at the vehicle windshield, electrical power is provided to the camera via the flexible electrical connection, the camera is controlled via the circuitry, the camera is operated to capture image data, which is provided to the circuitry via the flexible electrical connection and is received at the circuitry. The image processor processes the image data received at the circuitry of the circuit board for the plurality of driving assist systems of the vehicle.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to imaging systems or vision systems for vehicles.


BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Use of imaging sensors in vehicle imaging systems is common and known. Examples of such known systems are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,949,331; 5,670,935 and/or 5,550,677, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.


SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a vision system or imaging system for a vehicle that utilizes one or more cameras to capture images exterior of the vehicle, and provides the communication/data signals, including camera data or image data, that may be processed by an image processor, such as for a headlamp control or other machine vision system, or that may be displayed at a display screen that is viewable by the driver of the vehicle.


According to an aspect of the present invention, a vision system for a vehicle includes a camera or image sensor disposed at a windshield of a vehicle and having a field of view forward of the vehicle and through the windshield of the vehicle, and a processor operable to process data transmitted by the camera. The vision system or camera assembly or system includes an angular filter disposed at or near the windshield forward of the camera. The angular filter comprises a substantially transparent film that limits reflection of light through an angular range that generally corresponds to the stray light that reflects off of the vehicle (such as off of the vehicle dashboard) and would otherwise impinge the camera lens aperture.


The camera is electrically connected to circuitry established at a circuit board that is mounted generally along the windshield behind the camera, and the camera preferably is electrically connected to the circuitry via a flexible electrical connector. The flexible electrical connector flexes to allow a viewing angle of the camera to be adjusted relative to a mounting angle of the circuit board.


Therefore, the present invention provides an angular light filter that rejects or substantially rejects or attenuates reflections from the vehicle dash board into the camera. The angular filter replaces the stray light cone or shroud of a typical module or housing, allowing greater flexibility and lower mounting of the camera at the windshield.


These and other objects, advantages, purposes and features of the present invention will become apparent upon review of the following specification in conjunction with the drawings.





BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS


FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a camera disposed at a module that attaches at an interior surface of a vehicle windshield and that includes a stray light cone in front of the camera as part of the module or housing;



FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the camera module of FIG. 1, shown with the module mounted at a vehicle windshield with the stray light cone extending forward from the camera and along the windshield; and



FIG. 3 is a sectional view of a camera assembly or system with an angular light filter disposed along the windshield in front of the camera in accordance with the present invention.





DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

A vehicle vision system and/or driver assist system and/or object detection system and/or alert system operates to capture images exterior of the vehicle and may process the captured image data to display images and to detect objects at or near the vehicle and in the predicted path of the vehicle, such as to assist a driver of the vehicle in maneuvering the vehicle in a forward (or rearward) direction.


Front facing vehicular cameras include optical elements that constitute the camera. These elements are typically mounted in a vehicular camera housing, such as a windshield electronics module housing or the like, such as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 (and such as a housing that utilizes aspects of the vision systems described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,526,103; 7,480,149; 7,188,963; 6,824,281; 6,341,523; 6,250,148; 6,516,664 and/or 6,968,736, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties). As can be seen with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, the housing may extend forward of the camera lens aperture and includes a stray light cone or shroud which serves to insulate the camera lens aperture from stray light that arises from reflections off the dashboard and/or windshield. Such housings are typically relatively bulky compared to the optical elements of the camera and thus the housing may occupy a considerable amount of windshield real estate or space. It thus may be desirable to eliminate the housing, or at least minimize the extent of the camera housing, so as to free up space on the windshield. This would not only provide better aesthetics, but also increased visibility through the windshield for the driver of the vehicle.


As shown in FIG. 3, the present invention proposes to eliminate the stray light cone or shroud and minimize the camera housing so that the housing only contains the optical elements of the camera and any necessary interfacing elements. At the very least, the present invention seeks to eliminate the stray light cone or shroud so that there is a minimum of the camera housing projecting forward of the camera lens aperture. Instead of a stray light cone or shroud, the camera or vision system 10 of the present invention includes a camera 12, with an angular filter 14 placed on or near the windshield 16 forward of the camera 12 and the camera lens aperture (and not part of or incorporated in a camera housing of a windshield electronics module or the like). The angular filter 14 comprises a transparent (or substantially transparent or light transmitting) or see-through film, which limits or substantially precludes reflection of light through an angular range corresponding to the stray light that would otherwise impinge the camera lens aperture.


The angular filter 14 may comprise any suitable materials. For example, a suitable film material may be found on the likes of computer notebook screens and other types of display monitors and are commercially available from the 3M Company and other suppliers. In some embodiments, the filter may be placed directly on the windshield, and in other embodiments (and such as shown in FIG. 3) the filter may be spaced apart from the windshield surface on a plane just below the camera lens aperture, in which case the filter may be mounted on a transparent substrate (not shown) or the like. Optionally, the filter may be provided in the form of anti-reflective coating on the windshield, which acts to prevent reflections from the windshield.


With the proposed structure, the designer of the camera system or vision system is afforded a great deal of design flexibility. In particular, and as can be seen with reference to FIG. 3, it will be appreciated that the printed circuit board 18 and other electronic components may be housed and disposed rearward of the camera optical elements and placed higher up on or along or near the windshield or even hidden all together under the vehicle roof liner.


Optionally, and as shown in FIG. 3, a flexible coupling 20 may also be provided between the small camera 12 and the printed circuit board 18. With such a flexible coupling (which electrically connects circuitry of the circuit board with circuitry of the camera to power and/or control the camera and to receive image data from the camera), the present invention may provide a universal or substantially universal solution to many vehicles which may all have different windshield rake angles. For example, and as can be seen with reference to FIG. 3, the flexible coupling 20 may flex to allow the camera 12 to be arranged generally horizontally when the circuit board 18 is mounted along (and generally parallel to) the windshield 16, such as, for example, along a windshield that has a rake angle of about 20 degrees, and the flexible coupling 20 may be adjusted or flexed to allow the camera 12 to be arranged generally horizontally when the circuit board 18 is mounted along a different windshield 16′, such as, for example, along a windshield that has a rake angle of about 40 degrees. The flexible electrical connector thus flexes to allow a viewing angle of the camera to be adjusted relative to a mounting angle of the circuit board, depending on the particular vehicle application of the camera system. Thus, a common camera assembly or system 10 may be provided that may readily be adapted or configured for application to vehicles with different windshield angles (with the flexible coupling or flex connection allowing for adjustment of the angular tilt or relative angles between the camera and lens axis and the circuit board), without requiring additional mounting bracketry and the like to adapt the assembly to the particular vehicle.


The camera or sensor may comprise any suitable camera or sensor. Optionally, the camera may comprise a “smart camera” that includes the imaging sensor array and associated circuitry and image processing circuitry and electrical connectors and the like as part of a camera module, such as by utilizing aspects of the vision systems described in U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 61/565,713, filed Dec. 1, 2011; and/or Ser. No. 61/563,965, filed Nov. 28, 2011, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.


The vehicle may include any type of sensor or sensors, such as imaging sensors or radar sensors or lidar sensors or ultrasonic sensors or the like. The imaging sensor or camera may capture image data for image processing and may comprise any suitable camera or sensing device, such as, for example, an array of a plurality of photosensor elements arranged in 640 columns and 480 rows (a 640×480 imaging array), with a respective lens focusing images onto respective portions of the array. The photosensor array may comprise a plurality of photosensor elements arranged in a photosensor array having rows and columns. The logic and control circuit of the imaging sensor may function in any known manner, such as in the manner described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,550,677; 5,877,897; 6,498,620; 5,670,935; 5,796,094 and/or 6,396,397, and/or U.S. provisional applications, Ser. No. 61/615,410, filed Mar. 26, 2012; Ser. No. 61/613,651, filed 2012; Ser. No. 61/607,229, filed Mar. 6, 2012; Ser. No. 61/605,409, filed Mar. 1, 2012; Ser. No. 61/602,878, filed Feb. 24, 2012; Ser. No. 61/602,876, filed Feb. 24, 2012; Ser. No. 61/600,205, filed Feb. 17, 2012; Ser. No. 61/588,833, filed Jan. 20, 2012; Ser. No. 61/583,381, filed Jan. 5, 2012; Ser. No. 61/579,682, filed Dec. 23, 2011; Ser. No. 61/570,017, filed Dec. 13, 2011; Ser. No. 61/568,791, filed Dec. 9, 2011; Ser. No. 61/567,446, filed Dec. 6, 2011; Ser. No. 61/559,970, filed Nov. 15, 2011; Ser. No. 61/552,167, filed Oct. 27, 2011; Ser. No. 61/540,256, filed Sep. 28, 2011; Ser. No. 61/513,745, filed Aug. 1, 2011; Ser. No. 61/511,738, filed Jul. 26, 2011; and/or Ser. No. 61/503,098, filed Jun. 30, 2011, which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. The system may communicate with other communication systems via any suitable means, such as by utilizing aspects of the systems described in PCT Application No. PCT/US10/038477, filed Jun. 14, 2010, and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/202,005, filed Aug. 17, 2011, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,126,525, and/or U.S. provisional applications, Ser. No. 61/567,150, filed Dec. 6, 2011; Ser. No. 61/565,713, filed Dec. 1, 2011; and/or Ser. No. 61/537,279, filed Sep. 21, 2011, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.


The imaging device and control and image processor and any associated illumination source, if applicable, may comprise any suitable components, and may utilize aspects of the cameras and vision systems described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,550,677; 5,877,897; 6,498,620; 5,670,935; 5,796,094; 6,396,397; 6,806,452; 6,690,268; 7,005,974; 7,937,667; 7,123,168; 7,004,606; 6,946,978; 7,038,577; 6,353,392; 6,320,176; 6,313,454 and 6,824,281, and/or International Publication No. WO 2010/099416, published Sep. 2, 2010, and/or PCT Application No. PCT/US10/47256, filed Aug. 31, 2010, and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/508,840, filed Jul. 24, 2009, and published Jan. 28, 2010 as U.S. Pat. Publication No. US 2010-0020170; and/or U.S. provisional applications, Ser. No. 61/511,738, filed Jul. 26, 2011; and/or Ser. No. 61/503,098, filed Jun. 30, 2011, which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. The camera or cameras may comprise any suitable cameras or imaging sensors or camera modules, and may utilize aspects of the cameras or sensors described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/091,359, filed Apr. 24, 2008; and/or Ser. No. 13/260,400, filed Sep. 26, 2011, and/or U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,965,336 and/or 7,480,149, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. The imaging array sensor may comprise any suitable sensor, and may utilize various imaging sensors or imaging array sensors or cameras or the like, such as a CMOS imaging array sensor, a CCD sensor or other sensors or the like, such as the types described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,550,677; 5,670,935; 5,760,962; 5,715,093; 5,877,897; 6,922,292; 6,757,109; 6,717,610; 6,590,719; 6,201,642; 6,498,620; 5,796,094; 6,097,023; 6,320,176; 6,559,435; 6,831,261; 6,806,452; 6,396,397; 6,822,563; 6,946,978; 7,339,149; 7,038,577; 7,004,606 and/or 7,720,580, and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/534,632, filed May 11, 2005, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,965,336; and/or PCT Application No. PCT/US2008/076022, filed Sep. 11, 2008 and published Mar. 19, 2009 as International Publication No. WO 2009/036176, and/or PCT Application No. PCT/US2008/078700, filed Oct. 3, 2008 and published Apr. 9, 2009 as International Publication No. WO 2009/046268, which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.


The camera module and circuit chip or board and imaging sensor may be implemented and operated in connection with various vehicular vision-based systems, and/or may be operable utilizing the principles of such other vehicular systems, such as a vehicle headlamp control system, such as the type disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,796,094; 6,097,023; 6,320,176; 6,559,435; 6,831,261; 7,004,606; 7,339,149 and/or 7,526,103, which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties, a rain sensor, such as the types disclosed in commonly assigned U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,353,392; 6,313,454; 6,320,176 and/or 7,480,149, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties, a vehicle vision system, such as a forwardly, sidewardly or rearwardly directed vehicle vision system utilizing principles disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,550,677; 5,670,935; 5,760,962; 5,877,897; 5,949,331; 6,222,447; 6,302,545; 6,396,397; 6,498,620; 6,523,964; 6,611,202; 6,201,642; 6,690,268; 6,717,610; 6,757,109; 6,802,617; 6,806,452; 6,822,563; 6,891,563; 6,946,978 and/or 7,859,565, which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties, a trailer hitching aid or tow check system, such as the type disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,005,974, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, a reverse or sideward imaging system, such as for a lane change assistance system or lane departure warning system or for a blind spot or object detection system, such as imaging or detection systems of the types disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,720,580; 7,038,577; 5,929,786 and/or 5,786,772, and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/239,980, filed Sep. 30, 2005, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,881,496, and/or U.S. provisional applications, Ser. No. 60/628,709, filed Nov. 17, 2004; Ser. No. 60/614,644, filed Sep. 30, 2004; Ser. No. 60/618,686, filed Oct. 14, 2004; Ser. No. 60/638,687, filed Dec. 23, 2004, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties, a video device for internal cabin surveillance and/or video telephone function, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,760,962; 5,877,897; 6,690,268 and/or 7,370,983, and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/538,724, filed Jun. 13, 2005 and published Mar. 9, 2006 as U.S. Publication No. US-2006-0050018-A1, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties, a traffic sign recognition system, a system for determining a distance to a leading or trailing vehicle or object, such as a system utilizing the principles disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,396,397 and/or 7,123,168, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties, and/or the like.


Optionally, the circuit board or chip may include circuitry for the imaging array sensor and or other electronic accessories or features, such as by utilizing compass-on-a-chip or EC driver-on-a-chip technology and aspects such as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,255,451 and/or 7,480,149; and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/226,628, filed Sep. 14, 2005 and published Mar. 23, 2006 as U.S. Publication No. US-2006-0061008, and/or Ser. No. 12/578,732, filed Oct. 14, 2009 and published Apr. 22, 2010 as U.S. Publication No. US-2010-0097469, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.


Optionally, the vision system may include a display for displaying images captured by one or more of the imaging sensors for viewing by the driver of the vehicle while the driver is normally operating the vehicle. Optionally, for example, the vision system may include a video display device disposed at or in the interior rearview mirror assembly of the vehicle, such as by utilizing aspects of the video mirror display systems described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,690,268 and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/333,337, filed Dec. 21, 2011, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,264,672, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. The video mirror display may comprise any suitable devices and systems and optionally may utilize aspects of the compass display systems described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,370,983; 7,329,013; 7,308,341; 7,289,037; 7,249,860; 7,004,593; 4,546,551; 5,699,044; 4,953,305; 5,576,687; 5,632,092; 5,677,851; 5,708,410; 5,737,226; 5,802,727; 5,878,370; 6,087,953; 6,173,508; 6,222,460; 6,513,252 and/or 6,642,851, and/or European patent application, published Oct. 11, 2000 under Publication No. EP 0 1043566, and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/226,628, filed Sep. 14, 2005 and published Mar. 23, 2006 as U.S. Publication No. US-2006-0061008, which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. Optionally, the video mirror display screen or device may be operable to display images captured by a rearward viewing camera of the vehicle during a reversing maneuver of the vehicle (such as responsive to the vehicle gear actuator being placed in a reverse gear position or the like) to assist the driver in backing up the vehicle, and optionally may be operable to display the compass heading or directional heading character or icon when the vehicle is not undertaking a reversing maneuver, such as when the vehicle is being driven in a forward direction along a road (such as by utilizing aspects of the display system described in PCT Application No. PCT/US2011/056295, filed Oct. 14, 2011 and published Apr. 19, 2012 as International Publication No. WO 2012/051500, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety). Optionally, the vision system (utilizing a forward and/or rearward facing camera and other cameras disposed at the vehicle with exterior fields of view) and/or the camera or cameras as part of a vehicle vision system comprising or utilizing a plurality of cameras (such as utilizing a rearward facing camera and sidewardly facing cameras and a forwardly facing camera disposed at the vehicle), may provide a display of a top-down view or birds-eye view of the vehicle or a surround view at the vehicle, such as by utilizing aspects of the vision systems described in PCT Application No. PCT/US10/25545, filed Feb. 26, 2010 and published on Sep. 2, 2010 as International Publication No. WO 2010/099416, and/or PCT Application No. PCT/US10/47256, filed Aug. 31, 2010 and published Mar. 10, 2011 as International Publication No. WO 2011/028686, and/or PCT Application No. PCT/US11/62834, filed Dec. 1, 2011 and published Jun. 7, 2012 as International Publication No. WO 2012-075250, and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/333,337, filed Dec. 21, 2011, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,264,672, and/or U.S. provisional applications, Ser. No. 61/615,410, filed Mar. 26, 2012; Ser. No. 61/588,833, filed Jan. 20, 2012; Ser. No. 61/570,017, filed Dec. 13, 2011; Ser. No. 61/568,791, filed Dec. 9, 2011; Ser. No. 61/559,970, filed Nov. 15, 2011; Ser. No. 61/540,256, filed Sep. 28, 2011, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.


Optionally, the video mirror display may be disposed rearward of and behind the reflective element assembly and may comprise a display such as the types disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,530,240; 6,329,925; 7,855,755; 7,626,749; 7,581,859; 7,446,650; 7,370,983; 7,338,177; 7,274,501; 7,255,451; 7,195,381; 7,184,190; 5,668,663; 5,724,187 and/or 6,690,268, and/or in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/091,525, filed Apr. 25, 2008, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,855,755; Ser. No. 11/226,628, filed Sep. 14, 2005 and published Mar. 23, 2006 as U.S. Publication No. US-2006-0061008; and/or Ser. No. 10/538,724, filed Jun. 13, 2005 and published Mar. 9, 2006 as U.S. Publication No. US-2006-0050018, which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. The display is viewable through the reflective element when the display is activated to display information. The display element may be any type of display element, such as a vacuum fluorescent (VF) display element, a light emitting diode (LED) display element, such as an organic light emitting diode (OLED) or an inorganic light emitting diode, an electroluminescent (EL) display element, a liquid crystal display (LCD) element, a video screen display element or backlit thin film transistor (TFT) display element or the like, and may be operable to display various information (as discrete characters, icons or the like, or in a multi-pixel manner) to the driver of the vehicle, such as passenger side inflatable restraint (PSIR) information, tire pressure status, and/or the like. The mirror assembly and/or display may utilize aspects described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,184,190; 7,255,451; 7,446,924 and/or 7,338,177, which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. The thicknesses and materials of the coatings on the substrates of the reflective element may be selected to provide a desired color or tint to the mirror reflective element, such as a blue colored reflector, such as is known in the art and such as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,910,854; 6,420,036 and/or 7,274,501, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.


Optionally, the display or displays and any associated user inputs may be associated with various accessories or systems, such as, for example, a tire pressure monitoring system or a passenger air bag status or a garage door opening system or a telematics system or any other accessory or system of the mirror assembly or of the vehicle or of an accessory module or console of the vehicle, such as an accessory module or console of the types described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,289,037; 6,877,888; 6,824,281; 6,690,268; 6,672,744; 6,386,742 and 6,124,886, and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/538,724, filed Jun. 13, 2005 and published Mar. 9, 2006 as U.S. Publication No. US-2006-0050018, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.


Changes and modifications to the specifically described embodiments may be carried out without departing from the principles of the present invention, which is intended to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims as interpreted according to the principles of patent law.

Claims
  • 1. A method for providing image processing for a plurality of vehicular driving assist systems, the method comprising: mounting a camera module at a portion of an in-cabin side of a windshield of a vehicle;wherein the windshield of the vehicle, as mounted in the vehicle, has a rake angle of at least 20 degrees;wherein the camera module houses (i) a camera, (ii) a circuit board, (iii) at least one electrical connector and (iv) an image processor;wherein the camera comprises an imager and a lens;wherein the lens comprises optical elements;wherein the lens is accommodated in a lens barrel having a longitudinal axis;wherein the camera is electrically connected to circuitry of the circuit board via a flexible electrical connection;wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the camera views forward of the vehicle and through the windshield of the vehicle;with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield of the vehicle, (i) providing electrical power to the camera via the flexible electrical connection, (ii) controlling the camera via the circuitry, (iii) operating the camera to capture image data, (iv) providing image data captured by the camera to the circuitry via the flexible electrical connection and (v) receiving at the circuitry the image data provided via the flexible electrical connection; andprocessing via the image processor the image data received at the circuitry of the circuit board for a plurality of driving assist systems of the vehicle.
  • 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the imager of the camera comprises a CMOS imaging array having a plurality of photosensing elements arranged in at least 640 columns of photosensing elements and at least 480 rows of photosensing elements.
  • 3. The method of claim 1, wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the circuit board is parallel to an inner surface of the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield local to where the camera module is mounted.
  • 4. The method of claim 1, wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the circuit board subtends an angle relative to the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield that is less than an angle subtended by the longitudinal axis of the lens barrel of the camera relative to the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield.
  • 5. The method of claim 4, wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the circuit board subtends an angle relative to horizontal that is greater than an angle subtended by the longitudinal axis of the lens barrel of the camera relative to horizontal.
  • 6. The method of claim 1, wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the circuit board is tilted at an acute angle relative to the longitudinal axis of the lens barrel of the camera.
  • 7. The method of claim 1, wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the longitudinal axis of the lens barrel of the camera is at horizontal.
  • 8. The method of claim 1, wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the longitudinal axis of the lens barrel of the camera close to horizontal.
  • 9. The method of claim 1, wherein the rake angle of the windshield of the vehicle, as mounted in the vehicle, is less than 40 degrees.
  • 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of driving assist systems of the vehicle comprises at least an object detection system.
  • 11. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of driving assist systems of the vehicle comprises at least a vehicle headlamp control system.
  • 12. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of driving assist systems of the vehicle comprises at least a lane departure warning system.
  • 13. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of driving assist systems of the vehicle comprises at least a traffic sign recognition system.
  • 14. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of driving assist systems of the vehicle comprises (i) an object detection system of the vehicle, (ii) a vehicle headlamp control system of the vehicle, (iii) a lane departure warning system of the vehicle and (iv) a traffic sign recognition system of the vehicle.
  • 15. A method for providing image processing for a plurality of vehicular driving assist systems, the method comprising: mounting a camera module at a portion of an in-cabin side of a windshield of a vehicle;wherein the windshield of the vehicle, as mounted in the vehicle, has a rake angle of at least 20 degrees;wherein the camera module houses (i) a camera, (ii) a circuit board, (iii) at least one electrical connector and (iv) an image processor;wherein the camera comprises an imager and a lens;wherein the imager of the camera comprises a CMOS imaging array having a plurality of photosensing elements arranged in at least 640 columns of photosensing elements and at least 480 rows of photosensing elements;wherein the lens comprises optical elements;wherein the lens is accommodated in a lens barrel having a longitudinal axis;wherein the camera is electrically connected to circuitry of the circuit board via a flexible electrical connection;wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the camera views forward of the vehicle and through the windshield of the vehicle;with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield of the vehicle, (i) providing electrical power to the camera via the flexible electrical connection, (ii) controlling the camera via the circuitry, (iii) operating the camera to capture image data, (iv) providing image data captured by the camera to the circuitry via the flexible electrical connection and (v) receiving at the circuitry the image data provided via the flexible electrical connection;processing via the image processor the image data received at the circuitry of the circuit board for a plurality of driving assist systems of the vehicle; andwherein the plurality of driving assist systems of the vehicle comprises at least an object detection system.
  • 16. The method of claim 15, wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the circuit board subtends an angle relative to the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield that is less than an angle subtended by the longitudinal axis of the lens barrel of the camera relative to the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield.
  • 17. The method of claim 16, wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the circuit board subtends an angle relative to horizontal that is greater than an angle subtended by the longitudinal axis of the lens barrel of the camera relative to horizontal.
  • 18. The method of claim 15, wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the circuit board is tilted at an acute angle relative to the longitudinal axis of the lens barrel of the camera.
  • 19. The method of claim 15, wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the longitudinal axis of the lens barrel of the camera is at horizontal.
  • 20. The method of claim 15, wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the longitudinal axis of the lens barrel of the camera close to horizontal.
  • 21. The method of claim 15, wherein the plurality of driving assist systems of the vehicle comprises a vehicle headlamp control system.
  • 22. The method of claim 15, wherein the plurality of driving assist systems of the vehicle comprises a lane departure warning system.
  • 23. The method of claim 15, wherein the plurality of driving assist systems of the vehicle comprises a traffic sign recognition system.
  • 24. The method of claim 15, wherein the object detection system comprises a vehicle detection system.
  • 25. A method for providing image processing for a plurality of vehicular driving assist systems, the method comprising: mounting a camera module at a portion of an in-cabin side of a windshield of a vehicle;wherein the windshield of the vehicle, as mounted in the vehicle, has a rake angle of at least 20 degrees;wherein the camera module houses (i) a camera, (ii) a circuit board, (iii) at least one electrical connector and (iv) an image processor;wherein the camera comprises an imager and a lens;wherein the imager of the camera comprises a CMOS imaging array having a plurality of photosensing elements arranged in at least 640 columns of photosensing elements and at least 480 rows of photosensing elements;wherein the lens comprises optical elements;wherein the lens is accommodated in a lens barrel having a longitudinal axis;wherein the camera is electrically connected to circuitry of the circuit board via a flexible electrical connection;wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the camera views forward of the vehicle and through the windshield of the vehicle;with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield of the vehicle, (i) providing electrical power to the camera via the flexible electrical connection, (ii) controlling the camera via the circuitry, (iii) operating the camera to capture image data, (iv) providing image data captured by the camera to the circuitry via the flexible electrical connection and (v) receiving at the circuitry the image data provided via the flexible electrical connection;processing via the image processor the image data received at the circuitry of the circuit board for a plurality of driving assist systems of the vehicle; andwherein the plurality of driving assist systems of the vehicle comprises (i) an object detection system of the vehicle, (ii) a vehicle headlamp control system of the vehicle and (iii) a lane departure warning system of the vehicle.
  • 26. The method of claim 25, wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the circuit board is parallel to an inner surface of the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield local to where the camera module is mounted.
  • 27. The method of claim 25, wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the circuit board subtends an angle relative to the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield that is less than an angle subtended by the longitudinal axis of the lens barrel of the camera relative to the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield.
  • 28. The method of claim 27, wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the circuit board subtends an angle relative to horizontal that is greater than an angle subtended by the longitudinal axis of the lens barrel of the camera relative to horizontal.
  • 29. The method of claim 25, wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the circuit board is tilted at an acute angle relative to the longitudinal axis of the lens barrel of the camera.
  • 30. The method of claim 25, wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the longitudinal axis of the lens barrel of the camera is at horizontal.
  • 31. The method of claim 25, wherein, with the camera module mounted at the portion of the in-cabin side of the windshield, the longitudinal axis of the lens barrel of the camera close to horizontal.
  • 32. The method of claim 25, wherein the plurality of driving assist systems of the vehicle comprises a traffic sign recognition system.
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/948,878, filed Oct. 5, 2020, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,857,953, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/806,095, filed Mar. 2, 2020, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,793,086, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/449,546, filed Jun. 24, 2019, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,576,909, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/117,105, filed Aug. 30, 2018, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,328,868, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/878,579, filed Jan. 24, 2018, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,065,575, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/494,646, filed Apr. 24, 2017, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,878,679, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/180,643, filed Jun. 13, 2016, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,630,570, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/112,343, filed Oct. 17, 2013, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,380,219, which is a 371 national phase filing of PCT/US12/34236, filed Apr. 19, 2012, which claims the filing benefit of U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 61/477,315, filed Apr. 20, 2011, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

US Referenced Citations (311)
Number Name Date Kind
4514530 Sellstrom et al. Apr 1985 A
4634884 Hayashimoto et al. Jan 1987 A
4712879 Lynam et al. Dec 1987 A
4786966 Hanson et al. Nov 1988 A
5073012 Lynam Dec 1991 A
5076673 Lynam et al. Dec 1991 A
5096287 Kakinami Mar 1992 A
5098287 Duncan et al. Mar 1992 A
5115346 Lynam May 1992 A
5130804 Tamura Jul 1992 A
5140455 Varaprasad et al. Aug 1992 A
5142407 Varaprasad et al. Aug 1992 A
5151816 Varaprasad et al. Sep 1992 A
5204615 Richards et al. Apr 1993 A
5253109 O'Farrell et al. Oct 1993 A
5371659 Pastrick et al. Dec 1994 A
5406414 O'Farrell et al. Apr 1995 A
5497306 Pastrick Mar 1996 A
5525264 Cronin et al. Jun 1996 A
5550677 Schofield et al. Aug 1996 A
5559556 Kagebeck Sep 1996 A
5567360 Varaprasad et al. Oct 1996 A
5610756 Lynam et al. Mar 1997 A
5657539 Orikasa et al. Aug 1997 A
5668663 Varaprasad et al. Sep 1997 A
5669699 Pastrick et al. Sep 1997 A
5670935 Schofield et al. Sep 1997 A
5724187 Varaprasad et al. Mar 1998 A
5760962 Schofield et al. Jun 1998 A
5796094 Schofield et al. Aug 1998 A
5821532 Beaman et al. Oct 1998 A
5823654 Pastrick et al. Oct 1998 A
5854708 Komatsu et al. Dec 1998 A
5872332 Verma Feb 1999 A
5877897 Schofield et al. Mar 1999 A
5910854 Varaprasad et al. Jun 1999 A
5920061 Feng Jul 1999 A
5949331 Schofield et al. Sep 1999 A
5978017 Tino Nov 1999 A
6002511 Varaprasad et al. Dec 1999 A
6013372 Hayakawa et al. Jan 2000 A
6071606 Yamazaki et al. Jun 2000 A
6072814 Ryan et al. Jun 2000 A
6087953 DeLine et al. Jul 2000 A
6097023 Schofield et al. Aug 2000 A
6117193 Glenn Sep 2000 A
6124886 DeLine et al. Sep 2000 A
6151065 Steed et al. Nov 2000 A
6154306 Varaprasad et al. Nov 2000 A
6172613 DeLine et al. Jan 2001 B1
6176602 Pastrick et al. Jan 2001 B1
6178034 Allemand et al. Jan 2001 B1
6193378 Tonar et al. Feb 2001 B1
6201642 Bos Mar 2001 B1
6222447 Schofield et al. Apr 2001 B1
6243003 DeLine et al. Jun 2001 B1
6250148 Lynam Jun 2001 B1
6259475 Ramachandran et al. Jul 2001 B1
6276821 Pastrick et al. Aug 2001 B1
6278377 DeLine et al. Aug 2001 B1
6292311 Bohn et al. Sep 2001 B1
6302545 Schofield et al. Oct 2001 B1
6313454 Bos et al. Nov 2001 B1
6320176 Schofield et al. Nov 2001 B1
6326613 Heslin et al. Dec 2001 B1
6329925 Skiver et al. Dec 2001 B1
6341523 Lynam Jan 2002 B2
6353392 Schofield et al. Mar 2002 B1
6396397 Bos et al. May 2002 B1
6420975 DeLine et al. Jul 2002 B1
6428172 Hutzel et al. Aug 2002 B1
6445287 Schofield et al. Sep 2002 B1
6454449 Nestell et al. Sep 2002 B2
6466136 DeLine et al. Oct 2002 B2
6481003 Maeda Nov 2002 B1
6483101 Webster Nov 2002 B1
6498620 Schofield et al. Dec 2002 B2
6501387 Skiver et al. Dec 2002 B2
6523964 Schofield et al. Feb 2003 B2
6535242 Strumolo et al. Mar 2003 B1
6559435 Schofield et al. May 2003 B2
6559439 Tsuchida et al. May 2003 B1
6587152 Sharp et al. Jul 2003 B1
6590658 Case et al. Jul 2003 B2
6593565 Heslin et al. Jul 2003 B2
6603612 Nakano Aug 2003 B2
6611202 Schofield et al. Aug 2003 B2
6651187 Lacey, III Nov 2003 B2
6654187 Ning Nov 2003 B2
6690268 Schofield et al. Feb 2004 B2
6717610 Bos et al. Apr 2004 B1
6757109 Bos Jun 2004 B2
6768422 Schofield et al. Jul 2004 B2
6774356 Heslin et al. Aug 2004 B2
6795237 Marinelli et al. Sep 2004 B1
6805767 Shinomiya Oct 2004 B2
6806452 Bos et al. Oct 2004 B2
6822563 Bos et al. Nov 2004 B2
6824281 Schofield et al. Nov 2004 B2
6831261 Schofield et al. Dec 2004 B2
6891563 Schofield et al. May 2005 B2
6897432 Schmidtke et al. May 2005 B2
6946978 Schofield Sep 2005 B2
6953253 Schofield et al. Oct 2005 B2
6968736 Lynam Nov 2005 B2
6977619 March et al. Dec 2005 B2
7004593 Weller et al. Feb 2006 B2
7004606 Schofield Feb 2006 B2
7005974 McMahon et al. Feb 2006 B2
7015944 Holz et al. Mar 2006 B2
7031075 Tsuji Apr 2006 B2
7038577 Pawlicki et al. May 2006 B2
7095123 Prior Aug 2006 B2
7095572 Lee et al. Aug 2006 B2
7111996 Seger et al. Sep 2006 B2
7123168 Schofield Oct 2006 B2
7188963 Schofield et al. Mar 2007 B2
7205904 Schofield Apr 2007 B2
7215479 Bakin May 2007 B1
7255451 McCabe et al. Aug 2007 B2
7262406 Heslin et al. Aug 2007 B2
7265342 Heslin et al. Sep 2007 B2
7268957 Frenzel et al. Sep 2007 B2
7289037 Uken et al. Oct 2007 B2
7311406 Schofield et al. Dec 2007 B2
7325934 Schofield et al. Feb 2008 B2
7339149 Schofield et al. Mar 2008 B1
7344261 Schofield et al. Mar 2008 B2
7355524 Schofield Apr 2008 B2
7370983 DeWind et al. May 2008 B2
7388182 Schofield et al. Jun 2008 B2
7391458 Sakamoto Jun 2008 B2
7402786 Schofield et al. Jul 2008 B2
7419315 Hirata et al. Sep 2008 B2
7420159 Heslin et al. Sep 2008 B2
7423248 Schofield et al. Sep 2008 B2
7423665 Ray et al. Sep 2008 B2
7425076 Schofield et al. Sep 2008 B2
7453509 Losehand et al. Nov 2008 B2
7480149 DeWard et al. Jan 2009 B2
7526103 Schofield et al. Apr 2009 B2
7533998 Schofield et al. May 2009 B2
7536316 Ozer et al. May 2009 B2
7538316 Heslin et al. May 2009 B2
7551103 Schofield Jun 2009 B2
7579939 Schofield et al. Aug 2009 B2
7599134 Bechtel et al. Oct 2009 B2
7616781 Schofield et al. Nov 2009 B2
7655894 Schofield et al. Feb 2010 B2
7679498 Pawlicki et al. Mar 2010 B2
7697027 McMahon et al. Apr 2010 B2
7728721 Schofield et al. Jun 2010 B2
7768574 Humpston Aug 2010 B2
7877175 Higgins-Luthman Jan 2011 B2
7888629 Heslin et al. Feb 2011 B2
7889086 Schafer et al. Feb 2011 B2
7916009 Schofield et al. Mar 2011 B2
7918570 Weller et al. Apr 2011 B2
7946505 Lynam et al. May 2011 B2
7965336 Bingle et al. Jun 2011 B2
7972045 Schofield Jul 2011 B2
7994462 Schofield et al. Aug 2011 B2
8063759 Bos et al. Nov 2011 B2
8064146 Iwasaki Nov 2011 B2
8070332 Higgins-Luthman et al. Dec 2011 B2
8090153 Schofield et al. Jan 2012 B2
8120652 Bechtel et al. Feb 2012 B2
8142059 Higgins-Luthman et al. Mar 2012 B2
8162518 Schofield Apr 2012 B2
8179437 Schofield et al. May 2012 B2
8192095 Kortan et al. Jun 2012 B2
8194133 DeWind et al. Jun 2012 B2
8203440 Schofield et al. Jun 2012 B2
8222588 Schofield et al. Jul 2012 B2
8223203 Ohsumi et al. Jul 2012 B2
8239086 Higgins-Luthman Aug 2012 B2
8254011 Baur et al. Aug 2012 B2
8256821 Lawlor et al. Sep 2012 B2
8289142 Pawlicki et al. Oct 2012 B2
8294608 Lynam Oct 2012 B1
8314689 Schofield et al. Nov 2012 B2
8318512 Shah et al. Nov 2012 B2
8324552 Schofield et al. Dec 2012 B2
8325986 Schofield et al. Dec 2012 B2
8339453 Blake, III et al. Dec 2012 B2
8355839 Schofield et al. Jan 2013 B2
8376595 Higgins-Luthman Feb 2013 B2
8386114 Higgins-Luthman Feb 2013 B2
8405725 McMahon et al. Mar 2013 B2
8405726 Schofield et al. Mar 2013 B2
8451332 Rawlings May 2013 B2
8513590 Heslin et al. Aug 2013 B2
8529075 Yamada et al. Sep 2013 B2
8531278 DeWard et al. Sep 2013 B2
8534887 DeLine et al. Sep 2013 B2
8542451 Lu et al. Sep 2013 B2
8548315 Okuda Oct 2013 B2
8629768 Bos et al. Jan 2014 B2
8665079 Pawlicki et al. Mar 2014 B2
8743203 Kamer et al. Jun 2014 B2
8763970 Mordau et al. Jul 2014 B2
8851690 Uken et al. Oct 2014 B2
8944655 Verrat-Debailleul et al. Feb 2015 B2
9150165 Fortin et al. Oct 2015 B1
9156403 Rawlings et al. Oct 2015 B2
9193308 Okuda Nov 2015 B2
9266474 DeWard et al. Feb 2016 B2
9277104 Sesti et al. Mar 2016 B2
9338334 Lu et al. May 2016 B2
9380219 Salomonsson et al. Jun 2016 B2
9451138 Winden et al. Sep 2016 B2
9487159 Achenbach Nov 2016 B2
9497368 Winden et al. Nov 2016 B1
9596387 Achenbach et al. Mar 2017 B2
9630570 Salomonsson et al. Apr 2017 B2
9635230 Winden et al. Apr 2017 B2
9871971 Wang et al. Jan 2018 B2
9878679 Salomonsson et al. Jan 2018 B2
9883088 Winden et al. Jan 2018 B2
10033934 Wang et al. Jul 2018 B2
10046716 Okuda et al. Aug 2018 B2
10065575 Salomonsson et al. Sep 2018 B2
10264168 Winden et al. Apr 2019 B2
10277825 Wang et al. Apr 2019 B2
10328868 Salomonsson et al. Jun 2019 B2
10462375 Wang et al. Oct 2019 B2
10576909 Salomonsson et al. Mar 2020 B2
10793086 Salomonsson et al. Oct 2020 B2
10857953 Salomonsson et al. Dec 2020 B1
20020003571 Schofield et al. Jan 2002 A1
20020156559 Stam et al. Oct 2002 A1
20020159270 Lynam et al. Oct 2002 A1
20030090569 Poechmueller May 2003 A1
20030137595 Takachi Jul 2003 A1
20030169522 Schofield et al. Sep 2003 A1
20040016870 Pawlicki et al. Jan 2004 A1
20040032321 McMahon et al. Feb 2004 A1
20040051634 Schofield et al. Mar 2004 A1
20040189862 Gustavsson et al. Sep 2004 A1
20050083590 Tanigawa et al. Apr 2005 A1
20050104995 Spryshak et al. May 2005 A1
20050141106 Lee et al. Jun 2005 A1
20050184352 Jeong et al. Aug 2005 A1
20050190283 Ish-Shalom et al. Sep 2005 A1
20050232469 Schofield et al. Oct 2005 A1
20050274883 Nagano Dec 2005 A1
20060038668 DeWard et al. Feb 2006 A1
20060049533 Kamoshita Mar 2006 A1
20060050018 Hutzel et al. Mar 2006 A1
20060054802 Johnston Mar 2006 A1
20060056077 Johnston Mar 2006 A1
20060061008 Kamer et al. Mar 2006 A1
20060065436 Gally et al. Mar 2006 A1
20060077575 Nakai et al. Apr 2006 A1
20060103727 Tseng May 2006 A1
20060125919 Camilleri et al. Jun 2006 A1
20060171704 Bingle et al. Aug 2006 A1
20060184297 Higgins-Luthman Aug 2006 A1
20060202038 Wang et al. Sep 2006 A1
20070096020 Mitsugi et al. May 2007 A1
20070109406 Schofield et al. May 2007 A1
20070120657 Schofield et al. May 2007 A1
20070221826 Bechtel Sep 2007 A1
20070279518 Apel et al. Dec 2007 A1
20080024833 Kawasaki Jan 2008 A1
20080024883 Iwasaki Jan 2008 A1
20080043105 Kallhammer et al. Feb 2008 A1
20080121034 Lynam et al. May 2008 A1
20080247751 Lang et al. Oct 2008 A1
20080252882 Kesterson Oct 2008 A1
20090010494 Bechtel et al. Jan 2009 A1
20090046150 Hayakawa et al. Feb 2009 A1
20090085755 Schafer et al. Apr 2009 A1
20090208058 Schofield et al. Aug 2009 A1
20090244361 Gebauer et al. Oct 2009 A1
20090295181 Lawlor et al. Dec 2009 A1
20100103308 Butterfield et al. Apr 2010 A1
20100110192 Johnston et al. May 2010 A1
20100118146 Schofield et al. May 2010 A1
20100134616 Seger et al. Jun 2010 A1
20100165468 Yamada et al. Jul 2010 A1
20100279438 An et al. Nov 2010 A1
20100279439 Shah et al. Nov 2010 A1
20100283581 Heigl Nov 2010 A1
20110025850 Maekawa et al. Feb 2011 A1
20110035120 Taylor Feb 2011 A1
20110163904 Alland et al. Jul 2011 A1
20110233248 Flemming et al. Sep 2011 A1
20110298968 Tseng et al. Dec 2011 A1
20120008129 Lu et al. Jan 2012 A1
20120013741 Blake, III et al. Jan 2012 A1
20120069185 Stein Mar 2012 A1
20120075471 Seger et al. Mar 2012 A1
20120081550 Sewell Apr 2012 A1
20120182425 Higgins-Luthman et al. Jul 2012 A1
20120207461 Okuda Aug 2012 A1
20120265416 Lu et al. Oct 2012 A1
20130002873 Hess Jan 2013 A1
20130044021 Lynam Feb 2013 A1
20140000804 Looi et al. Jan 2014 A1
20140015977 Taylor Jan 2014 A1
20140016919 Okuda Jan 2014 A1
20140022657 Lu et al. Jan 2014 A1
20140043465 Salomonsson et al. Feb 2014 A1
20140160284 Achenbach et al. Jun 2014 A1
20140226012 Achenbach Aug 2014 A1
20150015713 Wang et al. Jan 2015 A1
20150042798 Takeda Feb 2015 A1
20150251605 Uken et al. Sep 2015 A1
20170182944 Achenbach et al. Jun 2017 A1
20170187931 Onishi et al. Jun 2017 A1
Foreign Referenced Citations (31)
Number Date Country
01059596 Mar 1992 CN
1743887 Mar 2006 CN
101681530 Mar 2010 CN
101799614 Aug 2010 CN
102008044003 May 2010 DE
102010023593 Dec 2011 DE
0889801 Jan 1999 EP
1025702 Aug 2000 EP
1271214 Jan 2003 EP
1351316 Oct 2003 EP
1504276 Feb 2005 EP
1605520 Dec 2005 EP
08084277 Mar 1996 JP
2006-293100 Oct 2006 JP
2006-350372 Dec 2006 JP
2007243550 Sep 2007 JP
2010042703 Feb 2010 JP
2001044850 Jun 2001 WO
2004010679 Jan 2004 WO
2006029995 Mar 2006 WO
2006029996 Mar 2006 WO
2007053404 May 2007 WO
2008024639 Feb 2008 WO
2008127752 Oct 2008 WO
2009046268 Apr 2009 WO
2010111465 Sep 2010 WO
2011111465 Sep 2011 WO
2013019795 Feb 2013 WO
2013081984 Jun 2013 WO
2013081985 Jun 2013 WO
2013123161 Aug 2013 WO
Non-Patent Literature Citations (1)
Entry
International Search Report and Written Opinion dated Jul. 23, 2012 for corresponding PCT Application No. PCT/US2012/34236.
Related Publications (1)
Number Date Country
20210086707 A1 Mar 2021 US
Provisional Applications (1)
Number Date Country
61477315 Apr 2011 US
Continuations (8)
Number Date Country
Parent 16948878 Oct 2020 US
Child 17247269 US
Parent 16806095 Mar 2020 US
Child 16948878 US
Parent 16449546 Jun 2019 US
Child 16806095 US
Parent 16117105 Aug 2018 US
Child 16449546 US
Parent 15878579 Jan 2018 US
Child 16117105 US
Parent 15494646 Apr 2017 US
Child 15878579 US
Parent 15180643 Jun 2016 US
Child 15494646 US
Parent 14112343 US
Child 15180643 US