Tracking alarm system, method and computer program product thereof

Abstract

A tracking alarm system used for being installed on a vehicle comprises a monitoring module, an odometer, an image processor, an alarm processor and a display instrument board. The image processor is electrically coupled to the monitoring module and the odometer. The alarm processor is electrically coupled to the image processor. The display dashboard is electrically coupled to the alarm processor. The monitoring module can capture a monitoring image behind the vehicle. The odometer can determine distance data when the vehicle moves. The image processor can identify a tracking vehicle from a plurality of monitoring images and associate the distance data when the vehicle moves with the monitoring images of the tracking vehicle so as to generate a travel image. The alarm processor may generate an alarm notification based on a threshold. The display dashboard can display the alarm notification to the vehicle for driving.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention generally relates to an alarm system and method, and more particularly to a tracking alarm system and method for a vehicle in motion. Background Art

[0002] Tracking a car is the process of tracking someone's driving route for annoying activities, such as paparazzi secretly taking photos of celebrities or thieves committing thefts, which has caused serious concerns about privacy and security in modern society. Unfortunately, existing vehicle monitoring systems usually require purchasing additional aftermarket components and installing them on the vehicle, resulting in increased driving workload and cost.

[0003] In particular, while conventional vehicle monitoring systems can effectively detect the distance between two cars in the same lane to prevent rear-end collisions, they are unable to identify the pursuit activities of the rear-end car. Summary of the invention

[0004] In order to overcome the disadvantages associated with the aforementioned systems, the present invention discloses a tracking alarm system. The tracking alarm system is used to be installed on a vehicle, and includes a monitoring module, an odometer, an image processor, an alarm processor and a display dashboard. The image processor is electrically coupled to the monitoring module and the odometer. The alarm processor is electrically coupled to the image processor. The display dashboard is electrically coupled to the alarm processor. The monitoring module can capture a monitoring image behind the vehicle. The odometer can determine the distance data when the vehicle is moving. The image processor can identify a tracking vehicle from a plurality of monitoring images, and associate the distance data when the vehicle is moving with the monitoring image of the tracking vehicle to generate a travel image. The alarm processor can determine a tracking distance by subtracting two distance data in two travel images that both show the tracking vehicle, and generate an alarm notification when the tracking distance exceeds a threshold. The display dashboard can display the alarm notification. The tracking alarm system can be configured so that the monitoring module further includes a first camera, a second camera and a third camera. The first camera is installed on the left side of the vehicle, the second camera is installed on the right side of the vehicle, and the third camera is installed at the rear of the vehicle. The first camera can capture a first image toward the left lane, the second camera can capture a second image toward the right lane, and the third camera can capture a third image toward the middle lane, and the monitoring image includes the first image, the second image and the third image. The tracking alarm system may further include a wireless transmitter electrically coupled to the alarm processor. The wireless transmitter can transmit the travel image to an external device. The tracking alarm system may be configured so that the alarm notification further includes presenting the travel image of the tracked vehicle.

[0005] In another aspect, the present invention provides a method for alerting a vehicle to a tracking vehicle. The method includes the steps of: obtaining a monitoring image behind the vehicle by a monitoring module; determining distance data when the vehicle is moving; identifying a tracking vehicle from a plurality of monitoring images; associating the distance data when the vehicle is moving with the monitoring image of the tracking vehicle to generate a travel image; determining a tracking distance by subtracting two distance data in two travel images that both show the tracking vehicle; generating an alarm notification when the tracking distance exceeds a threshold; and displaying the alarm notification on a display dashboard. The step of obtaining the monitoring image may include the steps of: capturing a first image toward the left lane by a first camera on the left side of the vehicle; capturing a second image toward the right lane by a second camera on the right side of the vehicle, and capturing a third image toward the middle lane by a third camera behind the vehicle, wherein the monitoring image includes the first image, the second image, and the third image. The method may further include the step of transmitting the travel image to an external device by a wireless transmitter. The step of displaying the alarm notification may further include displaying the travel image showing the tracking vehicle on the display dashboard.

[0006] In yet another aspect, a computer program product can be provided for the present invention. The computer program product may include a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium that can be read by a processing circuit and stores instructions for execution by a processor to perform a method. The method includes the steps of: obtaining a surveillance image behind a vehicle by a surveillance module; determining distance data when the vehicle is in motion; identifying a tracking vehicle from a plurality of surveillance images; associating the distance data when the vehicle is in motion with the surveillance image of the tracking vehicle to generate a travel image; determining a tracking distance by subtracting two distance data in two travel images that both show the tracking vehicle; generating an alarm notification when the tracking distance exceeds a threshold, and displaying the alarm notification on a display instrument panel. The step of obtaining the surveillance image may include the steps of: capturing a first image toward the left lane by a first camera on the left side of the vehicle; capturing a second image toward the right lane by a second camera on the right side of the vehicle, and capturing a third image toward the middle lane by a third camera behind the vehicle, wherein the surveillance image includes the first image, the second image, and the third image. The method may further include the step of transmitting the travel image to an external device via a wireless transmitter. The step of displaying the alarm notification may further include displaying the travel image showing the tracked vehicle on the display dashboard. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] The drawings illustrate examples, but they do not illustrate all embodiments, and other embodiments may be used in addition or alternatively. Details that may be obvious or unnecessary may be omitted to save space or for more efficient description. Some embodiments may be implemented with additional elements or steps and / or without all elements or steps shown. When the same symbol appears in different drawings, it represents the same or similar elements or steps.

[0008] Figure 1 A schematic diagram showing an embodiment of a tracking alarm system.

[0009] Figure 2 An embodiment of a tracking alert system that identifies one or more tracking vehicles is presented.

[0010] Figure 3 A schematic diagram showing another embodiment of a tracking alarm system.

[0011] Figure 4 A flow chart of an embodiment of a method for alerting a vehicle of a tracking vehicle is presented. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0012] Illustrative embodiments are now described, and other embodiments may be used in addition or alternatively. In order to save space or more effective description, details that may be obvious or unnecessary may be omitted. Some embodiments may be implemented with additional elements or steps and / or without all elements or steps shown.

[0013] Figure 1 A schematic diagram showing an embodiment of a tracking alarm system, Figure 2 An embodiment of a tracking alarm system for identifying one or more tracking vehicles is shown. The tracking alarm system can be integrated into a vehicle during its manufacturing process. In addition, it provides the flexibility of later installation as an aftermarket option for vehicles that were not originally equipped with the system. The tracking alarm system includes a monitoring module 11, an odometer 13, an image processor 15, an alarm processor 17 and a display panel 19.

[0014] Please also refer to Figure 1 to Figure 2 , the monitoring module 11 can capture the monitoring image behind the vehicle C1. It is worth noting that the monitoring module not only captures the image of the lane where the vehicle C1 is traveling, but also captures the images of the left and right adjacent lanes. This means that the monitoring module can capture the images of the tracking vehicle C2 on multiple lanes, including the left lane L1, the right lane L2 and the middle lane L3.

[0015] In this embodiment, the monitoring module 11 is a car camera system. For example, the monitoring module 11 has various cameras strategically placed on the vehicle C1 to provide a comprehensive view of the surrounding environment, including but not limited to a rear view camera, which is installed at the rear of the vehicle, usually near the license plate, and provides a view of the area behind the vehicle.

[0016] The odometer 13 can determine the distance data when the vehicle C1 is in motion. The odometer 13 may be a component integrated into the vehicle instrument or electronic control unit, designed to measure and record the distance traveled by the vehicle C1 while in motion. It can achieve this function by monitoring the rotation of the vehicle wheels or other related components, so that it can calculate the distance traveled based on the number of wheel revolutions or by other suitable methods.

[0017] The image processor 15 is electrically coupled to the monitoring module 11 and the odometer 13. In one embodiment, the image processor 15 can be implemented by one or more of a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a digital signal processor, a microcomputer, a central processing unit, a field programmable gate array, a programmable logic device, a state machine, a logic circuit, an analog circuit, a digital circuit, and / or any processing element that operates a signal according to an operation instruction.

[0018] The image processor 15 can analyze the surveillance images received from the surveillance module 11. Its image processing algorithms and functions enable it to identify the following vehicle from the surveillance images. For example, this image processing algorithm includes an optical character recognition algorithm. The optical character recognition algorithm can recognize the license plate of the following vehicle for further tracking analysis. The image processor 15 can further perform functions such as identifying the type of following vehicles, paying attention to the speed of the traveling vehicles, and monitoring abnormal road conditions. In one example, the range of following vehicles analyzed by the image processor 15 is limited to the three lanes near the vehicle C1 to effectively save computing time.

[0019] Once the image processor 15 successfully identifies the tracking vehicle C2 from the surveillance image, it can establish a relationship between the surveillance image of the tracking vehicle C2 and the distance data obtained by the odometer 13. This relationship helps to accurately associate the position and movement of the tracking vehicle C2 with the distance traveled by the vehicle C1 in the same trip.

[0020] By combining the surveillance image of the tracking vehicle C2 with the corresponding distance data of the vehicle C1 obtained by the odometer 13, the image processor 15 can generate a trip image. The trip image is a comprehensive visual representation of the captured image of the tracking vehicle C2 superimposed on the trip captured by the vehicle C1, together with the corresponding distance data. Therefore, the generated trip image can be used for various practical purposes, including accident prevention and evidence preservation. When the tracking vehicle C2 and the vehicle C1 are involved in an accident or incident, the trip image can be used to reconstruct the sequence of events. In addition, in the case of an insurance claim, the trip image can provide valuable evidence to support or verify the circumstances of the incident.

[0021] Therefore, the image processor 15 can identify a tracking vehicle C2 from a plurality of monitoring images, and associate the distance data of the vehicle C1 during movement with the monitoring image of the tracking vehicle C2, thereby generating a travel image.

[0022] The alarm processor 17 is electrically coupled to the image processor 15. In one embodiment, the alarm processor 17 may be implemented by one or more of a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a digital signal processor, a microcomputer, a central processing unit, a field programmable gate array, a programmable logic device, a state machine, a logic circuit, an analog circuit, a digital circuit, and / or any processing element that operates a signal according to an operation instruction.

[0023] To find out if there is any tracking activity, the alarm processor 17 performs a subtraction operation on the two sets of distance data from the trip images to determine a tracking distance. The alarm processor 17 retrieves the distance data from two trip images that both show the tracking vehicle C2. These images were taken at different points in time during the trip. The alarm processor 17 subtracts the earlier distance value from the later distance value to calculate the tracking distance.

[0024] If the calculated tracking distance between vehicle C1 and the tracking vehicle C2 exceeds a predetermined threshold, it indicates that the tracking vehicle is likely to be following the tracking vehicle C1.

[0025] When the tracking distance exceeds the threshold, the alarm processor 17 triggers an alarm notification. This alarm can take many forms, such as a visual alarm displayed on the dashboard 19, an audible alarm, or even an alarm sent to an external monitoring / security system.

[0026] Therefore, the alarm processor 17 may subtract two distance data in two travel images both showing the tracking vehicle C2 to determine a tracking distance, and generate an alarm notification when the tracking distance exceeds a threshold.

[0027] In one embodiment, the threshold is set between 2 and 15 miles. In other embodiments, the threshold can be adaptively determined based on the specific behavior of vehicle C1. It can be adjusted or changed based on the number of times vehicle C1 changes lanes. For example, the alarm processor 17 can detect the number of times vehicle C1 makes a left turn signal and a right turn signal. If the driver of vehicle C1 sees a suspicious vehicle and changes lanes 10 times in just 1 mile, the threshold will be set to 1 mile. Therefore, the alarm processor 17 can identify and continuously monitor the following vehicles within 1 mile to determine whether the tracking vehicle C2 still appears in the surveillance image. If detected, the system can continue to send further alarm notifications.

[0028] The display panel 19 is electrically coupled to the alarm processor 17. Therefore, the display panel 19 can receive the alarm notification and display it to the driver. The alarm is displayed on the dashboard of the car, providing the driver with timely information about the potential tailing or tracking vehicle. For example, the alarm notification further includes a trip image showing the tracking vehicle.

[0029] In particular, when the driver switches to the autonomous driving mode, they may not know that the tracking vehicle C2 has been tracking the vehicle C1 within a predetermined distance. Therefore, the driver may choose to switch back to the manual driving mode and change the route to protect their privacy and safety.

[0030] In one embodiment, the monitoring module 11 further includes a first camera 211, a second camera 213 and a third camera 215. The first camera 211 is installed on the left side of the vehicle C1, the second camera 213 is installed on the right side of the vehicle C1, and the third camera 215 is installed at the rear of the vehicle C1.

[0031] The first camera 211 can capture a first image toward the left lane L1, the second camera 213 can capture a second image toward the right lane L2, and the third camera 215 can capture a third image toward the middle lane L3, where the vehicle C1 is traveling. Therefore, the monitoring image may include the first image, the second image, and the third image.

[0032] Figure 3 A schematic diagram showing another embodiment of a tracking alarm system. The tracking alarm system includes a monitoring module 31, an odometer 32, an image processor 33, an alarm processor 34, a display instrument panel 35, and a wireless transmitter 36. The structures, functions, advantages, and connections between the monitoring module 31, the odometer 32, the image processor 33, the alarm processor 34, and the display instrument panel 35 are substantially similar to those of the aforementioned embodiment. In addition, the wireless transmitter 36 is electrically coupled to the alarm processor 34. The wireless transmitter 36 can transmit the trip image to an external device. The external device can be, but is not limited to, a driver's smartphone or a remote safety system.

[0033] Therefore, when the predetermined threshold is met, the system triggers an alert to the driver and further preserves evidence of the suspicious following vehicle to be sent to agencies such as insurance companies or police stations.

[0034] Figure 4 A flow chart of an embodiment of a method for alerting a vehicle to a tracking vehicle is shown. Figure 1 , 2 4. The method for alerting a vehicle to track a vehicle includes: Step S1: obtaining a surveillance image behind the vehicle C1 by a surveillance module; Step S2: determining the distance data of the vehicle C1 when it is moving; Step S3: Identify a tracking vehicle C2 from a plurality of surveillance images; Step S4: Associating the distance data of vehicle C1 during movement with the monitoring image of tracking vehicle C2 to generate a travel image; Step S5: Determine the tracking distance by subtracting two distance data in two travel images showing the tracking vehicle C2; Step S6: generating an alarm notification when the tracking distance exceeds a threshold; and Step S7: Display the alarm notification on the display panel 19.

[0035] In one embodiment, step S1 of obtaining a surveillance image may include multiple steps: capturing a first image toward the left lane L1 by a first camera 211 on the left side of the vehicle C1; capturing a second image toward the right lane L2 by a second camera 213 on the right side of the vehicle C1; and capturing a third image toward the middle lane L3 by a third camera 215 behind the vehicle C1, wherein the surveillance image includes the first image, the second image and the third image.

[0036] In one embodiment, the method may further include the step of transmitting the travel image to an external device by a wireless transmitter.

[0037] In one embodiment, the step of displaying the alarm notification may further include displaying a travel image showing the tracked vehicle on a display instrument panel.

[0038] The steps of the above method can be implemented by one or more embodiments of the above tracking alarm system, thereby avoiding redundant repetition of technical functions, results and advantages.

[0039] In another embodiment, a computer program product may be provided. The computer program product may include a non-transitory computer readable storage medium that can be read by a processing circuit and stores instructions for execution by a processor to perform one or more embodiments of the above-mentioned method for alerting a vehicle of a tracking vehicle. Therefore, in order to avoid redundant repetition, its technical functions, results and advantages are not repeated here. In one embodiment, the computer program product is an application software that can be downloaded from the Internet or other wireless network. This allows modern vehicles to upgrade their software programs to implement the method of alerting the driver of the tracking vehicle without the cost of hardware modification or installation.

[0040] Although the present invention has been described according to what is currently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments, it should be understood that the present invention is not necessarily limited to the disclosed embodiments. On the contrary, it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims, which should be interpreted in the broadest sense to cover all such modifications and similar structures.

[0041] Unless otherwise stated, the terms and sentences used in this article have the usual meaning in their respective fields. Relational terms such as "first" and "second" can be used only to distinguish one entity or action from another entity or action, without necessarily requiring or implying any actual relationship or order between them. When used in conjunction with a list of elements in a specification or claim, the terms "include", "comprise" and any other variants thereof are intended to indicate that the list is not exclusive and may include other elements. Similarly, without further limitation, an element beginning with "one" does not exclude the presence of additional elements of the same type.

Claims

1. A tracking alarm system integrated into a vehicle, characterized in that, include: A monitoring module, used to capture a monitoring image behind a vehicle; An odometer for determining distance data during movement of the vehicle; an image processor electrically coupled to the monitoring module and the odometer, wherein the image processor can identify a tracking vehicle from a plurality of monitoring images and associate the distance data of the vehicle when it moves with the monitoring image to which the tracking vehicle belongs, thereby generating a trip image; an alarm processor electrically coupled to the image processor, wherein the alarm processor can determine a tracking distance by subtracting two values ​​of the distance data in two travel images both showing the tracking vehicle, and generate an alarm notification when the tracking distance exceeds a threshold, wherein the threshold can be adaptively determined based on the number of occurrences of the vehicle changing lanes; and A display panel is electrically coupled to the alarm processor, wherein the display panel can display the alarm notification.

2. The tracking alarm system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The monitoring module includes: a first camera on a left side of the vehicle; a second camera on the right side of the vehicle; and a third camera at the rear of the vehicle; The first camera can capture a first image toward the left lane, the second camera can capture a second image toward the right lane, the third camera can capture a third image toward the middle lane, and the monitoring image includes the first image, the second image and the third image.

3. The tracking alarm system according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also includes: A wireless transmitter is electrically coupled to the alarm processor, wherein the wireless transmitter can transmit the trip images to an external device.

4. The tracking alarm system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The alert notification also includes images showing the journey of the tracked vehicle.

5. A method for alerting a vehicle to track a vehicle, characterized in that: include: Obtaining a surveillance image of the rear of a vehicle by a surveillance module integrated into the vehicle; Determining distance data while the vehicle is in motion by an odometer integrated into the vehicle; Identifying a tracking vehicle from a plurality of surveillance images; Associating the distance data of the vehicle when it is moving with the surveillance image to which the tracking vehicle belongs, thereby generating a travel image; Determining a tracking distance by subtracting two values ​​of the distance data in two trip images both showing the tracking vehicle; When the tracking distance exceeds a threshold, an alarm notification is generated, wherein the threshold can be adaptively determined according to the number of occurrences of the vehicle changing lanes; and The alarm notification is displayed on a display panel.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that Obtaining the surveillance image includes: capturing a first image toward the left lane by a first camera on the left side of the vehicle; capturing a second image towards the right lane by a second camera on the right side of the vehicle; and capturing a third image toward the middle lane by a third camera at the rear of the vehicle; The monitoring image includes the first image, the second image and the third image.

7. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that Also includes: The travel images are sent to an external device by a wireless transmitter.

8. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that Displaying the alarm notification also includes: displaying the travel images of the tracked vehicle on the display dashboard.

9. A computer program product, characterized in that include: A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium is readable by a processing circuit and stores instructions for execution by a processor to perform a method, the method comprising: Obtaining a surveillance image of the rear of a vehicle by a surveillance module integrated into the vehicle; Determining distance data while the vehicle is in motion by an odometer integrated into the vehicle; Identifying a tracking vehicle from a plurality of surveillance images; Associating the distance data of the vehicle when it is moving with the surveillance image to which the tracking vehicle belongs, thereby generating a travel image; Determining a tracking distance by subtracting two values ​​of the distance data in two trip images both showing the tracking vehicle; When the tracking distance exceeds a threshold, an alarm notification is generated, wherein the threshold can be adaptively determined according to the number of occurrences of the vehicle changing lanes; and The alarm notification is displayed on a display panel.

10. The computer program product according to claim 9, wherein: Obtaining the surveillance image includes: capturing a first image toward the left lane by a first camera on the left side of the vehicle; capturing a second image towards the right lane by a second camera on the right side of the vehicle; and capturing a third image toward the middle lane by a third camera at the rear of the vehicle; The monitoring image includes the first image, the second image and the third image.

11. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein: The method also includes: sending the travel images to an external device by a wireless transmitter.

12. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein: Displaying the alarm notification also includes: displaying the travel images of the tracked vehicle on the display dashboard.

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