Light-emitting device and mobile body

Abstract

A light-emitting device (1) is attached to a support body of a mobile body (100) alongside an imaging device (2), and emits invisible light which is detected by the imaging device (2) toward the ground. In the light-emitting device (1), a position (PP) of peak illuminance in an irradiation region (IA) of the invisible light with which the ground is irradiated is present at a position away from the support body. The irradiation region (IA) includes a first region (A1) including the position (PP) of peak illuminance, and a second region (A2) surrounding the first region (A1). When irradiance with which a white line (210) drawn on the ground can be detected is defined as white line irradiance, the first region (A1) is a region irradiated with the invisible light at an irradiance equal to or higher than the white line irradiance, and the second region (A2) is a region irradiated with the invisible light at an irradiance lower than the white line irradiance.

Description

Light-emitting device and mobile body

[0001] This invention relates to a light-emitting device and a mobile device such as an automobile.

[0002] Conventionally, vehicle monitoring systems that monitor the area around an automobile using images have been proposed (for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] In this type of vehicle monitoring system, an imaging device is mounted on the car's side mirror along with a light-emitting device. The light-emitting device emits infrared light, and the imaging device detects the infrared light reflected from the ground or obstacles, thereby generating an image of the area around the vehicle. This allows for the visualization and monitoring of the area around the vehicle.

[0004] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2015-71386

[0005] In vehicle monitoring systems using light-emitting and imaging devices, some of the infrared light emitted from the light-emitting device is reflected by the vehicle body, and this reflected light is detected by the imaging device, which can cause halation in the image generated by the imaging device. In particular, when the amount of light detected by the imaging device is large, the halation becomes more noticeable, and the quality of the image generated by the imaging device is greatly reduced or false detections occur.

[0006] In recent years, development has been progressing on parking assistance systems that help vehicles park by detecting white lines drawn on the ground in parking lots and other areas. Furthermore, development is also underway on automated parking systems that use autonomous driving technology to automatically park vehicles in parking lots and other areas by detecting white lines drawn on the ground, without requiring the driver to operate the vehicle.

[0007] In this case, it is conceivable that the white lines on the parking lot ground could be detected by infrared light emitted from the light-emitting device in the vehicle monitoring system described above.

[0008] However, it was found that when attempting to detect white lines on the ground using a light-emitting device in a vehicle monitoring system, the luminous flux of infrared light emitted from the device needs to be increased. In other words, it was found that the infrared irradiance required to detect white lines must be higher than the infrared irradiance required to detect obstacles (people or objects, etc.).

[0009] Therefore, when attempting to detect white lines on the ground using a light-emitting device in a vehicle monitoring system, the amount of infrared light emitted from the device increases, resulting in a larger amount of light detected by the imaging device. As a result, halation occurs in the image generated by the imaging device due to the infrared light reflected from the vehicle body.

[0010] This invention has been made in view of the above problems, and aims to provide a light-emitting device and a mobile body that can suppress the occurrence of halation in the image generated by the imaging device, even when a light-emitting device in a vehicle monitoring system detects white lines on the ground.

[0011] To achieve the above objective, one embodiment of the light-emitting device according to the present invention is a light-emitting device attached to a support of a moving body alongside an imaging device, which irradiates invisible light detected by the imaging device toward the ground, wherein the position of the peak illuminance in the irradiation area of ​​the invisible light irradiated toward the ground is located away from the support, and the irradiation area includes a first area including the position of the peak illuminance and a second area surrounding the first area, and if the irradiance that can detect a white line drawn on the ground is defined as the white line irradiance, then the first area is an area irradiated with invisible light at an irradiance of the same or greater than the white line irradiance, and the second area is an area irradiated with invisible light at an irradiance lower than the white line irradiance.

[0012] Furthermore, one embodiment of the mobile body according to the present invention comprises the above-mentioned light-emitting device, the imaging device, and the support body.

[0013] According to the present invention, even if a white line on the ground is detected using a light-emitting device in a vehicle monitoring system, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of halation in the image generated by the imaging device.

[0014] Figure 1 is a front view of a mobile body according to an embodiment. Figure 2 is a diagram showing the irradiation area of ​​infrared light emitted from the comparative example's light-emitting device to the ground in a vehicle monitoring system using the comparative example's light-emitting device and imaging device installed in a left-hand drive vehicle. Figure 3 is a diagram showing the irradiation area of ​​infrared light emitted from the comparative example's light-emitting device to the ground in a vehicle monitoring system using the comparative example's light-emitting device and imaging device installed in a right-hand drive vehicle. Figure 4 is a diagram showing the relationship between the position and irradiance in the irradiation area of ​​infrared light emitted from the comparative example's light-emitting device. Figure 5 is a diagram showing the irradiation area of ​​infrared light emitted from the embodiment's light-emitting device to the ground in a vehicle monitoring system using the embodiment's light-emitting device and imaging device installed in a left-hand drive vehicle. Figure 6 is a diagram showing the irradiation area of ​​infrared light emitted from the embodiment's light-emitting device to the ground in a vehicle monitoring system using the embodiment's light-emitting device and imaging device installed in a right-hand drive vehicle. Figure 7 is a diagram showing the relationship between the position and irradiance in the irradiation area of ​​infrared light emitted from the embodiment's light-emitting device. Figure 8 is a diagram showing the relationship between the position and irradiance in the irradiation area of ​​infrared light emitted from the light-emitting device according to Modification 1. Figure 9 shows the relationship between the position and irradiance in the irradiation area of ​​infrared light emitted from the light-emitting device according to Modified Example 2.

[0015] The embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the embodiments described below are all specific examples of the present invention. Therefore, the numerical values, shapes, materials, components, arrangement positions of components, and connection configurations shown in the following embodiments are examples and are not intended to limit the present invention. Accordingly, among the components in the following embodiments, those not described in the independent claims representing the highest-level concept of the present invention will be described as optional components.

[0016] Please note that each figure is a schematic diagram and not necessarily a strictly accurate representation. Therefore, the scale and other dimensions may not necessarily be consistent across all figures. In each figure, substantially identical components are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant explanations are omitted or simplified.

[0017] Furthermore, in this specification and drawings, the X, Y, and Z axes represent the three axes of a three-dimensional Cartesian coordinate system. The X and Y axes are orthogonal to each other and both are orthogonal to the Z axis. In the following embodiments, the Z-axis direction is vertical, with the positive Z-axis side being upward and the negative Z-axis side being downward. The Y-axis direction is to the side of the moving body (automobile), and the X-axis direction is the front-to-back direction of the moving body (automobile). The positive X-axis direction is the direction in which the moving body is moving (forward), and the negative X-axis direction is the direction opposite to the direction in which the moving body is moving (rearward).

[0018] (Embodiment) First, the mobile body 100 according to the embodiment will be described using Figure 1. Figure 1 is a front view of the mobile body 100 according to the embodiment.

[0019] As shown in Figure 1, the mobile unit 100 is an automobile, which is an example of a vehicle. Specifically, the mobile unit 100 is a four-wheeled automobile. The mobile unit 100, being an automobile, may be, for example, a gasoline-powered automobile driven by a gasoline engine, an electric-powered automobile driven by electricity, or a hybrid automobile. The mobile unit 100 may also be other automobiles such as a two-wheeled automobile (motorcycle).

[0020] The mobile unit 100 comprises a vehicle body 110, door mirrors 120, a light-emitting device 1, and an imaging device 2.

[0021] The vehicle body 110 is the main body of the mobile unit 100 and has a passenger compartment for the driver. Other passengers besides the driver may also ride in the passenger compartment of the vehicle body 110.

[0022] The door mirror 120 is a side mirror provided on the side of the vehicle body 110. The door mirror 120 is supported by the vehicle body 110. Specifically, the door mirror 120 is supported by the front door of the vehicle body 110. The door mirror 120 is provided on each of the two front doors. In other words, the mobile body 100 has a right-side door mirror 120 and a left-side door mirror 120. The right-side door mirror 120 and the left-side door mirror 120 have different installation angles. For example, the installation angles of the right-side door mirror 120 and the left-side door mirror 120 differ by about 10°. The position (height position) of the door mirror 120 in the Z-axis direction varies depending on the type of mobile body 100, but is between 0.5m and 1.4m from the ground 200.

[0023] The door mirror 120 is a support that supports the light-emitting device 1. In this embodiment, the door mirror 120 also supports the imaging device 2. In other words, the door mirror 120 supports both the light-emitting device 1 and the imaging device 2. In this embodiment, the light-emitting device 1 and the imaging device 2 are supported on each of the two door mirrors 120, but this is not limited to this. In other words, the light-emitting device 1 and the imaging device 2 may be supported on only one of the two door mirrors 120.

[0024] As shown in Figure 1, the light-emitting device 1 and the imaging device 2 are located on the side of the vehicle body 110 and are attached to the door mirror 120. Specifically, the light-emitting device 1 and the imaging device 2 are attached to the lower part of the door mirror 120. More specifically, the light-emitting device 1 and the imaging device 2 are attached to the lower part of the mirror cover on the door mirror 120.

[0025] The light-emitting device 1 is mounted on the door mirror 120 alongside the imaging device 2. For example, the light-emitting device 1 and the imaging device 2 are mounted on the door mirror 120 side by side in the Y-axis direction. Therefore, the light-emitting device 1 and the imaging device 2 are located at a position of 0.5 m to 1.4 m above the ground 200 in the Z-axis direction, although this will vary depending on the type of vehicle of the moving body 100.

[0026] Furthermore, the light-emitting device 1 is positioned closer to the vehicle body 110 than the imaging device 2. In other words, the imaging device 2 is positioned outside the light-emitting device 1. That is, they are arranged in the order of vehicle body 110, light-emitting device 1, and imaging device 2. However, the order of the light-emitting device 1 and imaging device 2 is not limited to this. Specifically, the imaging device 2 may be positioned closer to the vehicle body 110 than the light-emitting device 1. That is, they may be arranged in the order of vehicle body 110, imaging device 2, and light-emitting device 1.

[0027] As shown in Figure 1, the light-emitting device 1 illuminates the area surrounding the vehicle body 110 of the mobile body 100. Since the light-emitting device 1 is mounted below the door mirror 120, it illuminates downwards. Specifically, the light-emitting device 1 illuminates invisible light toward the ground 200. The ground 200 is, for example, a paved road surface.

[0028] The light-emitting device 1 comprises a light source that emits invisible light and a lens that controls the light distribution of the invisible light emitted from the light source. The light source is, for example, an LED light source composed of LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes). In this embodiment, the light source is an IR light source that emits infrared light (IR light) as invisible light. Therefore, the light-emitting device 1 irradiates infrared light toward the ground 200. Specifically, the light source in the light-emitting device 1 emits near-infrared light (NIR light) with a wavelength of about 700 nm to 2500 nm.

[0029] Furthermore, the light-emitting device 1 may be configured to emit not only invisible light such as infrared light, but also visible light such as white light. In this case, the light-emitting device 1 has a light source that emits invisible light (first light source) and a light source that emits visible light (second light source). The invisible light and visible light may be emitted simultaneously, or at different timings.

[0030] The imaging device 2 detects the non-visible light irradiated from the light-emitting device 1. That is, the light-emitting device 1 irradiates the non-visible light detected by the imaging device 2 toward the ground 200. The imaging device 2 detects the non-visible light that has become reflected light reflected by the ground 200 or an obstacle (person, object, etc.) among the non-visible light irradiated from the light-emitting device 1 toward the ground 200. The imaging device 2 generates an image of the vehicle peripheral area of the moving body 100 by detecting the reflected light reflected by the ground 200 or an obstacle around the moving body 100.

[0031] In the present embodiment, since the light-emitting device 1 irradiates infrared light, the imaging device 2 detects infrared light as non-visible light. Specifically, since the light-emitting device 1 irradiates near-infrared light, the imaging device 2 detects near-infrared light. In this case, as the imaging device 2, a near-infrared camera capable of detecting near-infrared light can be used. The imaging device 2 has an imaging element such as a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) image sensor or a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) image sensor, for example.

[0032] The light-emitting device 1 and the imaging device 2 attached to the door mirror 120 constitute a vehicle monitoring system. That is, an image of the vehicle peripheral area is generated by irradiating infrared light from the light-emitting device 1 and detecting the infrared light reflected by the ground 200 or an obstacle or the like with the imaging device 2.

[0033] Next, with reference to FIGS. 2 to 7, the features of the light-emitting device 1 according to the embodiment will be described including the background leading to the present invention.

[0034] In recent years, when parking an automobile in a parking space, the development of a parking support system that supports the parking of an automobile by detecting white lines drawn on the ground of a parking lot or the like has been underway. Also, with the development of autonomous driving technology, the development of an automatic parking system that automatically parks an automobile in a parking space without the driver operating the automobile by detecting white lines drawn on the ground of a parking lot or the like has also been underway.

[0035] At this time, it has been considered to detect the white line on the ground using a light-emitting device in a vehicle monitoring system using a light-emitting device and an imaging device. Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the infrared light irradiated from a light-emitting device (not shown) attached to the door mirror 120 of the moving body 100 is used to detect the white line 210 drawn in a parking lot or the like, and thus it has been considered to park the moving body 100 in the parking space 220.

[0036] FIGS. 2 and 3 show the irradiation area IAx of the infrared light irradiated from the light-emitting device of the comparative example onto the ground in a vehicle monitoring system using the light-emitting device and the imaging device of the comparative example. FIG. 2 shows the case where the moving body 100 is a left-hand drive vehicle, and FIG. 3 shows the case where the moving body 100 is a right-hand drive vehicle. Also, in FIGS. 2 and 3, the irradiation area IAx of the infrared light irradiated from the light-emitting device of the comparative example attached to the right door mirror 120 is shown. Note that not only the light-emitting device of the comparative example but also an imaging device is attached to the door mirror 120. Also, the light-emitting device and the imaging device of the comparative example are attached to the left door mirror 120 as well.

[0037] Also, in FIGS. 2 and 3, the white line 210 drawn on the ground of the parking lot is shown as a thick black straight line. The parking space 220 is the area between two white lines 210 and is a space where one moving body 100 can park. As an example, the distance between the two white lines 210 is 2.0 m to 3.0 m, but it is not limited to this.

[0038] When the inventors of the present application considered detecting the white line on the ground using the light-emitting device in the vehicle monitoring system, they found that it was necessary to increase the luminous flux of the infrared light irradiated from the light-emitting device. That is, it was found that the irradiance of the infrared light required to detect the white line 210 must be higher than the irradiance of the infrared light required to detect an obstacle (person or object, etc.). Therefore, in this case, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, it is necessary to make the entire irradiation area IAx of the infrared light a high-irradiance area.

[0039] Therefore, when attempting to detect the white line 210 using the comparative example's light-emitting device, the amount of light detected by the imaging device becomes large. As a result, halation occurs in the image generated by the imaging device due to infrared light emitted from the comparative example's light-emitting device and reflected by the vehicle body 110.

[0040] In particular, as shown in Figures 2 and 3, the position where the light-emitting device of the comparative example is installed is the origin P. ０ In this case, the irradiance distribution line showing the irradiance of the irradiation area IAx at a position perpendicular to the direction of travel of the moving body 100 (the Y-axis direction in Figures 2 and 3) is a linear function (straight line), as shown in Figure 4. Also, as shown in Figure 4, in the irradiation area IAx of infrared light irradiated from the comparative example's light-emitting device, the peak irradiance position P Ｐ The origin P ０ This means that the peak illuminance is located at position P. Ｐ This is the position of the door mirror 120. Therefore, if the amount of infrared light emitted from the light-emitting device to detect the white line 210 is increased, the amount of infrared light reflected by the vehicle body 110 of the moving body 100 will increase significantly, making it easier for halation to occur in the image generated by the imaging device.

[0041] Furthermore, since the mounting angle of the door mirror 120 relative to the vehicle body 110 differs between left-hand drive and right-hand drive vehicles, if the same light-emitting device is used for both left-hand drive and right-hand drive vehicles, the infrared light irradiation area IAx of the light-emitting device in the right-hand drive vehicle will be rotated relative to the infrared light irradiation area IAx of the light-emitting device in the left-hand drive vehicle by the amount of the difference in the mounting angle of the door mirror 120. As a result, for one of the left-hand drive or right-hand drive vehicles, the proportion of infrared light emitted from the light-emitting device that is reflected by the vehicle body 110 increases, making it easier for halation to occur in the image generated by the imaging device.

[0042] For example, the door mirror 120 of a right-hand drive vehicle shown in Figure 3 is, when viewed from the Z-axis direction, relative to the door mirror 120 of a left-hand drive vehicle shown in Figure 2, at the origin P ０It is installed on the vehicle body 110 in a state of rotating counterclockwise around the center. Therefore, the irradiation area IAx of the infrared light irradiated from the light emitting device of the right-hand drive vehicle shown in FIG. 3 is, when viewed from the Z-axis direction, relative to the irradiation area IAx of the infrared light irradiated from the light emitting device of the left-hand drive vehicle shown in FIG. 2, centered on the origin P ０ is in a state of rotating counterclockwise around the center. As a result, in front of the right-hand drive vehicle, the irradiation area IAx of the infrared light irradiated from the light emitting device will enter the vehicle body 110 side. For this reason, the right-hand drive vehicle shown in FIG. 3 has a higher ratio of infrared rays reflected by the vehicle body 110 than the left-hand drive vehicle shown in FIG. 2, and halation is likely to occur.

[0043] In response to such problems, as a result of the inventors of the present application intensively studying, by dividing the irradiation area of the infrared light irradiated from the light emitting device on the ground into a plurality according to the detection target, even when detecting the white line on the ground using the light emitting device in the vehicle monitoring system, a technique has been found that can suppress the occurrence of halation in the image generated by the imaging device.

[0044] Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, in the vehicle monitoring system using the light emitting device 1 according to the present embodiment, the position P of the peak illuminance in the irradiation area IA of the infrared light irradiated on the ground by the light emitting device 1 Ｐ is made to exist at a position away from the door mirror 120 instead of at the position of the door mirror 120. The position P of the peak illuminance Ｐ is more than 30 cm away from the moving body 100 along the direction (Y-axis direction) orthogonal to the traveling direction of the moving body 100 in the top view. Also, the position P of the peak illuminance Ｐ may be more than 100 cm, and further more than 150 cm away from the moving body 100. As an example, the position P of the peak illuminance Ｐ is 30 cm to 220 cm from the moving body 100. Note that the position P of the peak illuminance Ｐ may be in the range less than 30 cm from the moving body 100 or at a position exceeding 220 cm.

[0045] Figures 5 and 6 show the illumination area IA of infrared light emitted from the light-emitting device 1 onto the ground in a vehicle monitoring system using a light-emitting device 1 and an imaging device 2 according to an embodiment. Figure 5 shows the case where the mobile body 100 is a left-hand drive vehicle, and Figure 6 shows the case where the mobile body 100 is a right-hand drive vehicle. Figures 5 and 6 also show the illumination area IA of infrared light emitted from the light-emitting device 1 attached to the right-side door mirror 120. The white lines 210 and parking space 220 are the same as in Figures 2 and 3.

[0046] As shown in Figures 5 and 6, the irradiation area IA of infrared light irradiated onto the ground by the light-emitting device 1 includes a first area A1 and a second area A2 surrounding the first area A1. In other words, the irradiation area IA is divided into a first area A1 and a second area A2.

[0047] The first region A1 is at the position P of the peak illuminance. Ｐ This region includes the area and is located away from the door mirror 120. Furthermore, if the irradiance required to detect the white line 210 drawn on the ground is defined as the white line irradiance (target irradiance for white line detection), then the first region A1 is the region irradiated by infrared light from the light-emitting device 1 with an irradiance equal to or greater than the white line irradiance. In other words, the first region A1 is a high-irradiance region where the irradiance of the infrared light emitted from the light-emitting device 1 is high.

[0048] Peak illuminance location P Ｐ If the irradiance at point P is considered 100%, the irradiance at point P is, for example, between 20% and 50%. Also, the peak irradiance is at point P. Ｐ Let a be the irradiance at point A and b be the irradiance of the white line. For example, 0.05 ≤ b / a ≤ 0.50. In this case, the position P of the peak irradiance relative to the white line irradiance is... ＰThe irradiance in this context should be set according to the height of the light-emitting device 1. For example, if the light-emitting device 1 attached to the door mirror 120 is located at a position of approximately 0.5 m from the ground 200 in the Z-axis direction, then b / a ≈ 0.06. Also, if the light-emitting device 1 is located at a position of approximately 1.4 m from the ground 200 in the Z-axis direction, then b / a ≈ 0.34. In most automobiles, the door mirror 120 is located at a position of 0.5 m to 1.4 m from the ground 200, so if 0.05 ≤ b / a ≤ 0.50, then a light-emitting device 1 that can be applied to any type of automobile can be realized.

[0049] As shown in Figure 5, when the mobile body 100, which is an automobile, is positioned next to the two white lines 210, the first region A1 should overlap with the two white lines 210. However, the first region A1 may also overlap with only one white line 210. However, by having the first region A1 overlap with the two white lines 210, the two white lines 210 can be detected, allowing the mobile body 100 (automobile) to be parked in the parking space more accurately.

[0050] On the other hand, the second region A2 is a region irradiated by infrared light from the light-emitting device 1 at an irradiance lower than that of the white line irradiance. In other words, the second region A2 is a medium irradiance region where the irradiance of the infrared light emitted from the light-emitting device 1 is moderate. Obstacles (people or objects, etc.) located near the moving body 100 can be detected with infrared light at an irradiance lower than that required to detect the white line 210. Therefore, although the white line 210 cannot be detected in the second region A2, which is a medium irradiance region, obstacles located near the moving body 100 can be detected. In addition, in the first region A1, not only the white line 210 can be detected, but obstacles can also be detected. The second region A2 surrounds the entire first region A1, but it may surround only a part of the first region A1.

[0051] Furthermore, as shown in Figures 5 and 6, the position where the light-emitting device 1 is installed is the origin P. ０ In this case, the irradiance distribution line showing the irradiance of the irradiation area IA at a position perpendicular to the direction of travel of the moving body 100 (the Y-axis direction in Figures 5 and 6) is as shown in Figure 7, with the peak irradiance at position P ＰIt is an upward-convex curve that reaches a maximum at a certain point. Furthermore, in the illuminance distribution line shown in Figure 7, the curvature changes at the boundary between the first region A1 and the second region A2. In other words, the rate of change in irradiance is large at the boundary between the first region A1 and the second region A2, and the first region A1 and the second region A2 are clearly separated.

[0052] As described above, in the light-emitting device 1 according to this embodiment, the infrared irradiation area IA irradiated onto the ground by the light-emitting device 1 is separated into a first area A1 capable of detecting the white line 210 and a second area A2 capable of detecting obstacles. Furthermore, the first area A1, which is a high-irradiance area, is kept away from the vehicle body 110 of the mobile body 100, so that the second area A2, which is a medium-irradiance area, exists in the vicinity of the vehicle body 110 of the mobile body 100. In other words, the area in the vicinity of the vehicle body 110 of the mobile body 100 is specialized for detecting obstacles.

[0053] This reduces and suppresses the infrared light beam near the vehicle body 110 of the mobile body 100, thereby suppressing the occurrence of halation in the image generated by the imaging device 2 due to reflected infrared light. Moreover, by surrounding the first region A1, which is a high irradiance region, with the second region A2, which is a medium irradiance region, a wider medium irradiance region can be secured, thereby expanding the obstacle detection area.

[0054] Furthermore, the irradiation area IA is separated into the first area A1 and the second area A2, and the peak illuminance position P Ｐ One way to change this is through the lens provided in the light-emitting device 1. For example, by devising the shape of the lens that controls the light distribution of infrared light emitted from the IR light source, the irradiation area IA can be separated into a first area A1 and a second area A2, or the position of the peak illuminance P can be changed. Ｐ You can change it.

[0055] Furthermore, the door mirror 120 of the right-hand drive vehicle shown in Figure 6 is, when viewed from the Z-axis direction, relative to the door mirror 120 of the left-hand drive vehicle shown in Figure 5, at the origin P ０It is installed on the vehicle body 110 in a state where it is rotated counterclockwise around the center. Therefore, the infrared light irradiation area IA emitted from the light-emitting device 1 of the right-hand drive vehicle shown in Figure 6 is, when viewed from the Z-axis direction, relative to the infrared light irradiation area IA emitted from the light-emitting device 1 of the left-hand drive vehicle shown in Figure 5, the origin P ０ The vehicle is rotated counterclockwise around the center, and in the right-hand drive vehicle shown in Figure 6, the proportion of infrared light emitted from the light-emitting device 1 reflected by the vehicle body 110 is higher than in the left-hand drive vehicle shown in Figure 5. However, the portion of the illumination area IA that overlaps with the vehicle body 110 is the second area A2, which is a medium irradiance area.

[0056] This allows the irradiance of infrared light reflected by the vehicle body 110 to be kept low even in right-hand drive vehicles, thereby suppressing the occurrence of halation in the image generated by the imaging device 2. Therefore, even if the same structure of the light-emitting device 1 is used in left-hand drive and right-hand drive vehicles with different mounting angles, the occurrence of halation in the image generated by the imaging device 2 can be suppressed. In other words, the light-emitting device 1 according to this embodiment can be used in both right-hand drive and left-hand drive vehicles. Furthermore, the light-emitting device 1 according to this embodiment can be used regardless of the position (height position) of the door mirror 120 in the Z-axis direction. In other words, the light-emitting device 1 according to this embodiment can be used in all types of automobiles, including sedans, SUVs, minivans, and kei cars.

[0057] As described above, according to the light-emitting device 1 of this embodiment, the position P of the peak illuminance in the irradiation area IA of the infrared light irradiated onto the ground from the light-emitting device 1 is Ｐ It is located away from the door mirror 120, and the illumination area IA is at the peak illuminance position P Ｐ It includes a first region A1 which is a region that includes the white line irradiance and is irradiated with infrared light at an irradiance equal to or greater than the white line irradiance, and a second region A2 which surrounds the first region A1 and is irradiated with infrared light at an irradiance lower than the white line irradiance.

[0058] As a result, even if the light-emitting device 1 in the vehicle monitoring system detects the white line 210, the occurrence of halation in the image generated by the imaging device 2 can be suppressed. Moreover, since the second region A2, which is a medium irradiance region, can be secured widely, the obstacle detection area can be expanded. In other words, the obstacle detection area can be expanded while suppressing halation.

[0059] (Modifications) The light-emitting device and mobile body according to the present invention have been described above based on embodiments, but the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments.

[0060] For example, in the above embodiment, the position P of the peak illuminance in the irradiation area IA is Ｐ When the irradiance in a given area is set to 100%, the white line irradiance required to detect the white line 210 is set to be between 20% and 50%, but this is not limited to this. Specifically, the position P of the peak irradiance in the irradiation area IA. Ｐ When the irradiance at is set to 100%, the irradiance of the white line 210 that can be detected may be set to 20% or more and 30% or less. In this case, the position where the light-emitting device 1 is installed is set to the origin P. ０ In this case, the irradiance distribution line showing the irradiance of the irradiation area IA at a position perpendicular to the direction of travel of the moving body 100 (Y-axis direction) may be the curve shown in Figure 8.

[0061] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the illuminance distribution line showing the irradiance of the irradiation area IA is an upward-convex curve, and its curvature changes at the boundary between the first area A1 and the second area A2, but this is not limited to this. For example, as shown in Figure 9, the illuminance distribution line showing the irradiance of the irradiation area IA does not have to have a change in curvature at the boundary between the first area A1 and the second area A2.

[0062] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the illuminance distribution line showing the irradiance of the irradiation area IA is a curve, but it is not limited to this. For example, the illuminance distribution line showing the irradiance of the irradiation area IA may be a combination of multiple straight lines with different slopes. In this case, the slope of the illuminance distribution line changes at the boundary between the first area A1 and the second area A2.

[0063] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the support to which the light-emitting device 1 and the imaging device 2 are attached was a door mirror 120, but it is not limited to this. For example, the support to which the light-emitting device 1 and the imaging device 2 are attached may be the vehicle body 110 of the mobile body 100, or it may be a component installed on the vehicle body 110 (a component other than the door mirror 120).

[0064] Furthermore, the present invention also includes forms obtained by applying various modifications to the above embodiments and modifications that a person skilled in the art could conceive, as well as forms realized by arbitrarily combining the components and functions of the embodiments and modifications without departing from the spirit of the present invention. In addition, the present invention also includes any combination of two or more claims from the multiple claims described in the claims of the present application, provided that it is not technically contradictory. For example, if the cited claims described in the claims of the present application are made into a multi-claim or multi-multi-claim so as to refer to all of the higher-level claims without technically contradictory, the combination of all claims included in that multi-claim or multi-multi-claim is also included in the present invention.

[0065] 1. Light-emitting device 2. Imaging device 100. Mobile body 120. Door mirror (support) 210. White line IA. Illumination area A1. First area A2. Second area

Claims

1. A light-emitting device mounted on a support of a moving body alongside an imaging device, which emits invisible light detected by the imaging device toward the ground, wherein the position of the peak illuminance in the irradiation area of ​​the invisible light irradiated onto the ground is located at a position away from the support, the irradiation area includes a first area including the position of the peak illuminance and a second area surrounding the first area, and if the irradiance that can detect a white line drawn on the ground is defined as the white line irradiance, then the first area is an area irradiated with the invisible light at an irradiance equal to or greater than the white line irradiance, and the second area is an area irradiated with the invisible light at an irradiance lower than the white line irradiance.

2. The light-emitting device according to claim 1, wherein if the irradiance at the peak illuminance position is a and the irradiance of the white line is b, then b / a ≥ 0.

05.

3. The light-emitting device according to claim 2, wherein b / a ≤ 0.

50.

4. The light-emitting device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the position of the peak illuminance is located at a distance of 30 cm or more from the light-emitting device in a direction perpendicular to the direction of travel of the moving body when viewed from above.

5. The light-emitting device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein, in the illuminance distribution line showing the irradiance of the irradiation area at a position perpendicular to the direction of travel of the moving body with the position of the light-emitting device as the origin, the curvature or slope changes at the boundary between the first area and the second area.

6. A mobile body comprising: a light-emitting device according to any one of claims 1 to 3; an imaging device; and a support body.

7. The mobile body according to claim 6, wherein the support is a door mirror.

Images