Vehicle black box, operation method therefor, and server

Abstract

A vehicle black box according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises: a transmission unit for transmitting location information of the vehicle black box to a server; a reception unit for receiving, from the server, traffic information including road alignment information, static road information about a road in a traveling direction within a specific distance of a vehicle, and traffic incident information on the basis of the location information; a photographing unit for starting video recording from a time point of entering an event point included in the traffic information on the basis of the location information; and a generation unit for generating event information by performing image recognition on the recorded video, wherein the transmission unit may transmit the generated event information to the server or a following vehicle.

Description

Vehicle black box, its operation method, and server

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle black box that provides event information related to vehicle driving, an operating method thereof, and a server.

[0002] With the advancement of information and communication technology (IT), various electronic devices that can assist in driving are being installed in automobiles.

[0003] Representative examples include navigation, which provides directions from the vehicle's current location to the destination, and a black box (dashboard camera) installed on the vehicle's dashboard to record the vehicle's external environment.

[0004] Specifically, a car black box refers to an impact detection device with a built-in camera and recording device. These black boxes, also known as dashboard cameras, dashcams, or car DVRs (digital video recorders), are mounted on the front or rear of a vehicle and can capture video and audio.

[0005] For example, a black box for a car records information about the vehicle's driving conditions and accident situations, allowing for a more accurate assessment of the circumstances of a car accident based on the recorded information in the event of one.

[0006] Meanwhile, conventional vehicle black boxes have the disadvantage of low usability as they only record information about vehicle accidents that occur while the vehicle is in operation.

[0007] The present invention has been conceived in the technical background described above, and aims to provide a vehicle black box and an operating method thereof, which receives static road information corresponding to a pre-designated distance from a map server corresponding to a driving position and driving direction angle when a vehicle is driving on a road, that is, a direction of travel from the vehicle's position, and generates information for safe driving of the vehicle based on an image captured using a camera mounted in the vehicle.

[0008] The technical problems of the present invention are not limited to the technical problems mentioned above, and other technical problems not mentioned can be clearly understood by a person having ordinary skill in the technical field to which the present invention belongs from the description below.

[0009] According to an embodiment of the present invention for solving the above-described technical problem, a vehicle black box includes a transmission unit that transmits location information of the vehicle black box to a server, a reception unit that receives traffic information including road linear information, static road information for a road in a direction of travel within a specific distance of a vehicle, and accident information from the server based on the location information, a shooting unit that starts shooting an image from the time of entering an event point included in the traffic information based on the location information, and a generation unit that performs image recognition on the shot image to generate event information, and the transmission unit can transmit the generated event information to the server or a following vehicle.

[0010] In addition, an operating method of a vehicle black box according to another embodiment of the present invention for solving the above technical problem may include an operation of transmitting location information of the vehicle black box to a server through a transmission unit, an operation of receiving traffic information including road linear information, static road information and accident information for a road in a traveling direction within a specific distance of the vehicle from the server based on the location information through a reception unit, an operation of starting video recording from a point of time when entering an event point included in the traffic information based on the location information through a shooting unit, an operation of generating event information by performing image recognition on the shot video through a generation unit, and an operation of transmitting the generated event to the server or a following vehicle through the transmission unit.

[0011] In addition, a server according to another embodiment of the present invention for solving the above technical problem further includes a receiving unit for receiving location information of a vehicle black box, a transmitting unit for transmitting traffic information including road linear information, static road information for a road in the direction of travel within a specific distance of a vehicle, and accident information to the vehicle black box based on the location information, and a generating unit for generating event information based on the location information and the traffic information, wherein the transmitting unit can transmit the generated event information to the vehicle black box or a following vehicle.

[0012] The above-described problem-solving methods are merely exemplary and should not be construed as limiting the present invention. In addition to the exemplary embodiments described above, additional embodiments may exist, as described in the drawings and detailed description of the invention.

[0013] According to a vehicle black box and its operating method according to one embodiment of the present invention, traffic information can be received while the vehicle is driving on a road, and information for safe driving of the vehicle can be generated based on images captured using a camera installed in the vehicle.

[0014] In addition, according to the present invention, it is possible to prevent safety accidents that may occur due to vehicle speeding, etc. by collecting vehicle driving information on specific road facilities.

[0015] The effects that can be obtained from the present invention are not limited to the effects mentioned above, and other effects not mentioned can be clearly understood by a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains from the description below.

[0016] FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of a system for collecting information on road traffic conditions using a vehicle black box according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0017] FIG. 2 is a drawing showing a functional block diagram of a vehicle black box according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0018] FIG. 3 is a drawing illustrating a functional block diagram of a server according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0019] FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 are flowcharts illustrating an operating method of a vehicle black box according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the attached drawings. When adding reference numerals to components in each drawing, it should be noted that identical components are given the same numerals as much as possible even if they are shown in different drawings. In addition, when describing embodiments of the present invention, if a detailed description of a related known configuration or function is judged to hinder understanding of the embodiments of the present invention, a detailed description thereof will be omitted. In addition, although embodiments of the present invention will be described below, the technical idea of ​​the present invention is not limited thereto and may be modified and implemented in various ways by those skilled in the art.

[0021] Throughout the specification, when a part is said to be "connected" to another part, this includes not only cases where it is "directly connected" but also cases where it is "indirectly connected" with another element in between. Throughout the specification, when a part is said to "include" a certain component, this does not mean that other components are excluded, but rather that other components may be included, unless specifically stated otherwise. In addition, when describing components of embodiments of the present invention, terms such as first, second, A, B, (a), (b), etc. may be used. These terms are only intended to distinguish the components from other components, and the nature, order, or sequence of the components are not limited by the terms.

[0022] FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of a system (1) for collecting information on road traffic conditions using a vehicle black box according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0023] Referring to FIG. 1, a system (1) for collecting road traffic conditions may include a vehicle group (10) composed of a plurality of vehicles, a DB (20) storing information related to driving of the vehicles, a vehicle black box (100), and a server (200).

[0024] Each vehicle within a vehicle group (10) may be equipped with a vehicle black box (100) and may mean at least one vehicle driving on a road.

[0025] DB (20) can receive information about the driving of a vehicle and information about the traffic conditions on the road on which the vehicle is driving from a server (100), a vehicle black box (100), or a vehicle group (10) via a wireless network and store the information in a database (DB). Unlike the example illustrated in FIG. 1, DB (20) may be included in the server (200).

[0026] A vehicle black box (100) can obtain driving-related information of a vehicle, information on traffic conditions on a road on which the vehicle is driving, etc., and transmit the information to a server (200), or transmit the information to at least one vehicle included in a vehicle group (10) to share the information.

[0027] According to one embodiment, a vehicle black box (100) can transmit images of the current location, driving speed, driving direction, and surrounding road of the vehicle to a server (200) or at least one vehicle included in a vehicle group (10).

[0028] In addition, according to one embodiment, a vehicle black box (100) performs image recognition on an image captured of a driving road, and uses the image to determine whether an accident, traffic congestion, construction, etc. has occurred on the driving road or around the road, and transmits the result to a server (200) or at least one vehicle included in a vehicle group (10).

[0029] The server (200) can receive driving-related information from the vehicle black box (100) via a wireless network, and transmit traffic information on a road in the direction of travel within a specific distance from the current location of the vehicle to the vehicle black box (100) of the vehicle. Here, the specific distance may be a distance preset by the user in the black box (100).

[0030] According to one embodiment, the server (200) can transmit information about road traffic on which the vehicle is currently driving, information about road facilities that the vehicle can enter, etc., centered on the location of the vehicle black box (100), to the vehicle black box (100).

[0031] According to the present invention, a vehicle black box and an operating method thereof can be provided, which receive static road information corresponding to a driving position and driving direction angle, that is, a predetermined distance from the vehicle's position to the vehicle's speed and direction of travel when the vehicle is driving on a road, from a map server, and generate information for safe driving of the vehicle based on an image captured using a camera mounted in the vehicle.

[0032] Below, the configuration and operation of each of the vehicle black box (100) and server (200) mounted on the vehicle will be described in more detail.

[0033] FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 each illustrate functional block diagrams of a vehicle black box (100) and a server (200) according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0034] First, referring to FIG. 2, a vehicle black box (100) may include a transmission unit (110), a reception unit (120), a photographing unit (130), a generation unit (140), a driving information collection unit (150), an event prediction information generation unit (160), and a guidance unit (170).

[0035] The transmission unit (110) can transmit location information of a vehicle equipped with a vehicle black box (100) to the server (200). The location information of the vehicle may include, for example, information regarding the current location of the vehicle, the driving direction of the vehicle, the driving speed of the vehicle, etc.

[0036] The receiving unit (120) can receive traffic information on a road in the direction of travel within a certain distance from the vehicle based on the vehicle's location information from the server (200).

[0037] Traffic information may include road alignment information, static road information for the road ahead, and accident information as road alignment information. For example, road alignment information may include horizon map data and horizon path data as Electronic Horizon Data defined in the ADASIS protocol. Horizon map data may include at least one of topology data, road data, HD map data, and dynamic data. Horizon path data may include data indicating the relative probability of selecting a road at a fork, junction, or intersection, as a trajectory that the vehicle can take within the range from the vehicle's location to the horizon.

[0038] For example, static road information for the driving road ahead includes information on the location of road facilities on the driving road based on the current location of the vehicle, information on the speed limit when entering a specific road, information on the shape of the road, etc., and accident information may include information on whether an accident, traffic congestion (traffic jam, control, detour), construction, etc. has occurred on the driving road of the vehicle.

[0039] According to the present invention, static road information and accident information are inserted into electronic horizon data defined in the ADASIS protocol and provided to a vehicle black box (100), so that the vehicle black box (100) can directly check and collect event information such as traffic congestion, road control, and accident presence. Here, the static road information is road information (number of lanes, slope, pavement condition, etc.), and the dynamic information is the result of black box detection by a preceding vehicle and accident information by a traffic-related agency, etc., and can be provided together with information such as number of lanes, slope, pavement condition, etc. for each road unit (e.g., intersection) to the electronic horizon data.

[0040] Furthermore, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide information on road conditions other than the road on which the vehicle is currently driving, as well as road conditions on roads accessible to the vehicle, thereby enabling the detection of traffic flow conditions based on information on surrounding roads. For example, if a vehicle is scheduled to proceed straight through an intersection ahead, it is possible to detect in advance a situation where the road leading to a right turn from the intersection ahead is closed.

[0041] Accordingly, the present invention can overcome the limitation of existing navigation services in which traffic information is provided only for the road on which the vehicle is driving. According to one embodiment, the receiving unit (120) can receive road image information for a list of expected driving roads for the vehicle based on the vehicle's location information and traffic information received from the server (200). For example, the receiving unit (120) can receive road image information for at least one driving route from a list of multiple expected driving routes from a starting point to a destination through the server (200). At this time, at least one driving route can be selected by the driver.

[0042] The camera unit (130) can capture images of the surroundings of the vehicle from the time the vehicle enters a specific event point on the road based on the current location of the vehicle. For example, if the camera unit (130) determines that the vehicle is close to a specific road facility, has entered a specific road, or has entered an accident section, a traffic congestion section, a construction section, etc. on the road based on traffic information received from the server (200), the camera unit (130) can start capturing images of the surroundings of the vehicle. For example, the camera unit (130) can be set not to capture images of the surroundings of the vehicle when a specific event does not occur, but to capture images of the surroundings of the vehicle only when a specific event occurs.

[0043] The generation unit (140) can perform image recognition on images captured by the camera unit (130) and generate event information based on the image recognition. The event information can include, for example, information on the location of an event occurrence, the type of event, the scope of the event's influence, the traffic status, and the expected delay time for a specific event point based on the image recognition results. For example, the generation unit (140) can also be configured to perform image recognition on images captured by the camera unit (130) only when a specific event occurs.

[0044] In this case, the generation unit (140) can perform image recognition using an artificial intelligence model and generate event information based on the image recognition. For example, the artificial intelligence model may be a model based on deep learning, machine learning, neural networks, etc.

[0045] According to one embodiment, the generation unit (140) may provide information about the traffic conditions on the road on which the vehicle is driving and information on how to deal with the same.

[0046] For example, if the generation unit (140) determines that a traffic congestion has occurred on the road on which the vehicle is driving based on the image captured by the shooting unit (130), it can search for information on a detour road and provide the information to the driver along with information on the location of the point where the traffic congestion occurred.

[0047] According to the present invention, a vehicle black box (100) can perform image recognition to identify the cause of a traffic situation (a situation in which a road in the direction of a right turn from the aforementioned forward intersection is controlled), and can transmit this analysis information to a following vehicle.

[0048] According to one embodiment, the transmission unit (110) may transmit the event information generated by the generation unit (140) to the server (200) or to at least one vehicle included in the vehicle group (10). The at least one vehicle included in the vehicle group (10) may mean, for example, a following vehicle driving along the driving road of a vehicle equipped with a vehicle black box (100).

[0049] That is, the vehicle black box (100) can induce safe driving for a following vehicle driving on the road by sharing information about the traffic conditions on the road on which the vehicle is driving with a server (200) or at least one vehicle included in a vehicle group (10) using a video captured of the external situation of the vehicle.

[0050] The driving information collection unit (150) can collect driving information of a vehicle in a location adjacent to a specific road facility. For example, the driving information collection unit (150) can collect driving information regarding the vehicle's driving speed at the time of entering a specific road facility, the delay time after stopping, etc., to determine the driver's driving habits on a specific road facility.

[0051] The event prediction information generation unit (160) can generate event prediction information based on the vehicle's driving information collected through the driving information collection unit (150) and the traffic information received through the receiving unit (120) when the vehicle approaches a location adjacent to a specific road facility. The event prediction information can include, for example, information on the possibility of a vehicle accident occurring at a specific road facility.

[0052] According to one embodiment, the event prediction information generation unit (160) can generate accident risk information upon entering the toll gate and transmit it to the driver when the vehicle's passing speed is faster than the reference speed when entering the toll gate and traffic congestion is expected at the toll gate point on the driving road.

[0053] The guidance unit (170) can provide information in advance through voice through a speaker and symbols through a display based on traffic information received from the server.

[0054] In addition, the guide unit (170) may provide information in advance about the event information generated by the generation unit (140) and the event prediction information generated by the event prediction information generation unit (160) through voice through a speaker and symbols through a display.

[0055] In addition, the guidance unit (170) transmits accident information, event information, and event prediction information to equipment in the vehicle (e.g., head-up display (HUD), vehicle infotainment system) that is connected to the black box (100) in communication, so that the equipment in the vehicle can provide accident information, event information, and event prediction information in advance through voice through a speaker and symbols through a display.

[0056] Next, referring to FIG. 3, the server (200) may include a receiving unit (210), a transmitting unit (220), a generating unit (230), and an event prediction information generating unit (240).

[0057] The receiving unit (210) receives vehicle location information from each vehicle black box (100) installed in the vehicle group (10), and based on this, can receive information about the traffic conditions of the road on which each vehicle is driving from the DB (20). For example, the receiving unit (210) can collect information about the traffic conditions of the road on which the vehicle is driving based on the current location of the vehicle, the driving direction of the vehicle, or the driving speed of the vehicle.

[0058] The transmission unit (220) can transmit traffic information on the road in the direction of travel within a specific distance of the vehicle to each vehicle black box (100) based on the vehicle's location information.

[0059] The generation unit (230) can generate event information based on location information and traffic information received through the reception unit (210). The event information can include, for example, information on the location of an event occurrence, the type of event, the scope of the event's influence, the vehicle's status, and the expected delay time for a specific event point on a road on which the vehicle is driving. In addition, the transmission unit (220) can transmit the event information generated through the generation unit (230) to each vehicle black box (100) or to a following vehicle included in the vehicle group (10).

[0060] The event prediction information generation unit (240) can generate event prediction information based on information received through the reception unit (210). The event prediction information may include, for example, information on the possibility of a vehicle accident occurring on a road on which the vehicle is driving.

[0061] FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 are flowcharts illustrating an operating method of a vehicle black box according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0062] The operations of FIGS. 4 and 5 below may be performed sequentially, but are not necessarily performed sequentially. For example, the order of the operations may be changed, and at least two operations may be performed in parallel.

[0063] For reference, the vehicle black box and server described in FIGS. 4 and 5 may refer to the vehicle black box (100) and server (200) described in FIGS. 2 and 3, respectively.

[0064] First, referring to FIG. 4, the vehicle black box (100) can receive traffic information from the server (200) in operation S11. The traffic information can include, for example, at least one of static road information and accident information on a road in the direction of travel within a specific distance of the vehicle based on the location information of the vehicle black box (100).

[0065] In operation S12, if the traffic information received from the server (200) includes accident information, the vehicle black box (100) can provide the information in the form of voice and symbols through the display (S13).

[0066] For example, when a vehicle black box (100) receives information about a road on which the vehicle is currently driving or a road on which the vehicle can enter from a server (200), it provides information about the road in question in advance through voice and symbols on the display, thereby enabling the vehicle to recognize the traffic flow situation on the road on which the vehicle is driving and the surrounding roads.

[0067] According to one embodiment, if the vehicle black box (100) determines that the vehicle has entered a specific road facility or a specific road based on traffic information received from the server (200), it can perform image recognition on an image captured around the vehicle.

[0068] In operation S14, when event information is generated based on image recognition results, the vehicle black box (100) can provide information through voice and display. As described above, the event information may include information on the location of the event occurrence, the type of event, the scope of the event's impact, vehicle traffic conditions, and expected delay times for a specific event point.

[0069] Additionally, according to one embodiment, the vehicle black box (100) can generate event prediction information indicating accident risk information of the vehicle when the vehicle approaches a specific road facility or a location adjacent to a specific road.

[0070] In operation S15, when event prediction information is generated based on the vehicle's driving information and traffic information, the vehicle black box (100) can guide the event information in the form of symbols through voice and display, thereby promoting safe driving of the vehicle.

[0071] Next, referring to FIG. 5, the vehicle black box (100) can transmit vehicle location information including the current location of the vehicle, the driving direction of the vehicle, the driving speed of the vehicle, etc. to the server (200) in operation S1.

[0072] In operation S2, the vehicle black box (100) can receive traffic information including at least one of static road information and accident information on a road in the direction of travel within a specific distance of the vehicle in response to the vehicle's location information from the server (200).

[0073] In S3 operation, the vehicle black box (100) can capture surrounding images of the vehicle from the time it enters an event point, which is a point corresponding to traffic information based on the current location of the vehicle.

[0074] In operation S4, the vehicle black box (100) can perform image recognition on the captured video to generate event information. The event information may include, for example, information on the location of an event occurrence, the type of event, the scope of the event's influence, vehicle traffic conditions, and expected delay time for a specific event point based on the image recognition results.

[0075] As described above, according to the vehicle black box and its operating method according to one embodiment of the present invention, traffic information can be received while the vehicle is driving on a road, and information for safe driving of the vehicle can be generated based on images captured using a camera mounted in the vehicle.

[0076] In addition, according to the present invention, it is possible to prevent safety accidents that may occur due to vehicle speeding, etc. by collecting vehicle driving information on specific road facilities.

[0077] Meanwhile, the various embodiments described herein may be implemented by hardware, middleware, microcode, software, and / or a combination thereof. For example, the various embodiments may be implemented in one or more application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), digital signal processing devices (DSPDs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), processors, controllers, microcontrollers, microprocessors, other electronic units designed to perform the functions presented herein, or a combination thereof.

[0078] Additionally, for example, various embodiments may be embodied or encoded in a computer-readable medium containing instructions. Instructions embodied or encoded in the computer-readable medium may cause a programmable processor or other processor to perform a method when the instructions are executed, for example. A computer-readable medium includes a computer storage medium, which may be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer. For example, such a computer-readable medium may include a RAM, a ROM, an EEPROM, a CD-ROM or other optical disk storage medium, a magnetic disk storage medium, or other magnetic storage devices.

[0079] Such hardware, software, firmware, etc. may be implemented within the same device or within separate devices to support the various operations and functions described herein. Additionally, components, units, modules, components, etc. described as “units” in the present invention may be implemented together or individually as separate but interoperable logic devices. The depiction of different features for modules, units, etc. is intended to highlight different functional embodiments and does not necessarily imply that they must be realized by separate hardware or software components. Rather, the functionality associated with one or more modules or units may be performed by separate hardware or software components, or integrated into common or separate hardware or software components.

[0080] Although operations are depicted in the drawings in a specific order, this should not be construed as requiring that these operations be performed in the specific order depicted, or in any sequential order, or that all depicted operations be performed to achieve the desired results. In certain circumstances, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Furthermore, the distinction between the various components in the embodiments described above should not be construed as requiring such distinction in all embodiments, and it should be understood that the components depicted may generally be integrated together into a single software product or packaged into multiple software products.

[0081] As described above, the best practice embodiments have been disclosed in the drawings and specifications. While specific terminology has been used herein, it is solely for the purpose of describing the present invention and is not intended to limit the scope of the invention as defined in the claims. Therefore, those skilled in the art will understand that various modifications and equivalent embodiments are possible. Therefore, the true technical protection scope of the present invention should be defined by the technical spirit of the appended claims.

[0082] 100: Car Black Box

[0083] 200: Server

Claims

1. In a vehicle black box that provides driving-related event information, A transmission unit that transmits location information of the above vehicle black box to a server; A receiving unit that receives traffic information including road linear information, static road information for a road in the direction of travel within a specific distance of the vehicle, and accident information from the server based on the above location information; A camera unit that starts recording video from the point of entering the event point included in the traffic information based on the location information; and Includes a generation unit that performs image recognition on the above-described captured image to generate event information, A vehicle black box, wherein the above-mentioned transmission unit transmits the generated event information to the server or a following vehicle.

2. In paragraph 1, The above transmission unit, A vehicle black box that further transmits information on the driving direction and driving speed of the vehicle to the server.

3. In paragraph 1, A vehicle black box, wherein the above road alignment information is electronic horizon data defined in the ADASIS protocol, including horizon map data and horizon pass data.

4. In paragraph 1, The above static road information includes information related to road facilities for the road in the direction of travel, A vehicle black box, wherein the above-mentioned accident information includes information related to at least one of an accident, construction, congestion, control, and detour on the road in the direction of travel.

5. In paragraph 1, The above generating unit Perform image recognition on the above captured image, A vehicle black box that generates event information including at least one of an event occurrence location, an event type, an event influence range, a vehicle traffic status, and an expected delay time for the event point based on the image recognition result.

6. In paragraph 1, The above receiver A vehicle black box further receiving event information for at least one of a list of expected driving roads of the vehicle based on the location information and the traffic information.

7. In paragraph 1, A driving information collection unit that collects driving information related to the driving of the vehicle in a location adjacent to road facilities; and A vehicle black box further comprising an event prediction information generation unit that generates event prediction information based on the driving information and the traffic information when the vehicle approaches a location adjacent to the road facility.

8. The operating method of the vehicle black box that provides driving-related event information is as follows: An action of transmitting location information of the vehicle black box to a server through a transmission unit; An operation of receiving traffic information including road linear information, static road information for a road in the direction of travel within a specific distance of the vehicle, and accident information from the server based on the location information through a receiving unit; An action of starting video recording from the point of entry into the event point included in the traffic information based on the location information through the shooting unit; An operation of generating event information by performing image recognition on the captured image through a generation unit; and An operating method of a vehicle black box, including an operation of transmitting the generated event to the server or a following vehicle through the transmission unit.

9. In a server that provides event information related to driving, A receiving unit that receives location information from a vehicle black box; A transmission unit that transmits traffic information including road linear information, static road information for a road in the direction of travel within a predetermined specific distance of the vehicle, and accident information to the vehicle black box based on the above location information; and Includes a generation unit that generates event information based on the location information and the traffic information, The above transmission unit is a server that transmits the generated event information to the vehicle black box or a following vehicle.

Images