ADB Light Distribution Pattern for Accurate Front Vehicle Detection

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing adaptive driving beam (ADB) control systems struggle to accurately detect the position of front vehicles, leading to potential glare for oncoming vehicles and reduced visibility for the driver.

Innovation Solution

A light distribution controlling device that includes a vehicle detector, a region determiner, and a pattern determiner. The device detects front vehicles through image analysis, sets a processing region by adding a margin to the vehicle's presence region, and determines a light distribution pattern with a light blocking portion based on pixel values of luminous points in the image.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Illumination intensity

If ADB control brightly illuminates a wide range ahead of the vehicle to improve driver visibility, then driver visibility is improved, but glare is caused to drivers of preceding or oncoming vehicles

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedriver visibilityVSAvoidglare to other drivers

Core Design Contradiction:

Illumination intensityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies local quality by creating a light distribution pattern where different regions have different luminance characteristics. Specifically, the light blocking portion is generated at locations corresponding to detected vehicles, creating localized dark regions that prevent glare to other drivers while maintaining high luminance in other areas for driver visibility. This is achieved by setting pixel values to zero or low values in the light blocking portion while keeping other regions brightly illuminated.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

2Reliability

If image analysis is performed to detect front vehicles for ADB control, then vehicle position detection is enabled, but detection accuracy is insufficient leading to unreliable light blocking

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvevehicle position detection reliabilityVSAvoidvehicle position detection precision

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSMeasurement precision

Solution Approach 1:

The patent utilizes color changes and luminance characteristics of vehicle lights (headlights, taillights, brake lights) to detect and identify vehicles. By analyzing the specific color and brightness patterns of these light sources in the captured image, the system can reliably detect vehicle positions and determine appropriate light blocking regions, overcoming the limitations of generic image analysis.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #32Color changes

Data Source

PatentEP4044148B1Vehicle position detection device, vehicle lamp system, and vehicle position detection method

Publication Date: 2025.06.04 KOITO MFG CO LTD

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AI summary

A light distribution control device 6 comprises: a vehicle detection unit 14 for detecting a front vehicle via image analysis of an image obtained by an imaging device 4 which images the region in front of the vehicle; a region determination unit 16 for determining a region to be processed, the region to be processed including the region occupied by the front vehicle and a prescribed margin added thereto in the vehicle width direction; and a pattern detection unit 18 that, in parallel with the detection of the front vehicle by the vehicle detection unit 14, determines a light blocking part in the image obtained by the imaging device 4 on the basis of pixel values of a pair of light points included in the region to be processed and arranged in the vehicle width direction, to determine a light distribution pattern PTN including the light blocking part.