Autonomous Vehicle Cabin Camera Control for Passenger Privacy
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Solution Overview
Problem
In autonomously traveling vehicles, there is a balance to be struck between passenger safety and privacy, as continuous monitoring by in-vehicle cameras can infringe on privacy while the absence of monitoring may compromise safety, especially when only one passenger is present.
Innovation Solution
The vehicle is equipped with an in-vehicle camera, a camera controller, and a passenger information detection unit that stops the camera's operation when only one passenger is present, while resuming operation when multiple passengers are on board, and can also be controlled based on passenger approval or detection of abnormalities.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the in-vehicle camera operates continuously to monitor the passenger, then passenger safety is improved, but passenger privacy is violated and the passenger experience deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The camera operation state is dynamically adjusted based on the number of passengers detected. The system transitions between different operational states (operating vs. stopped) according to real-time passenger count, making the monitoring system adaptive rather than static. This resolves the contradiction by enabling continuous monitoring only when necessary (multiple passengers) while respecting privacy when not needed (single passenger).
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the operational parameter of the camera (on/off state) based on the parameter of passenger count. When the passenger count parameter changes from 1 to multiple, the camera operational parameter changes from stopped to operating. This parameter-based control mechanism allows the system to balance safety and privacy requirements automatically.
2Ease of operation
If the in-vehicle camera is stopped to protect passenger privacy, then passenger comfort is improved, but passenger safety monitoring is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The camera system dynamically adjusts its operation based on passenger count conditions. The system is designed to be comfortable for single passengers by stopping the camera, while automatically becoming vigilant for safety when multiple passengers are detected. This dynamic behavior resolves the contradiction between comfort and safety monitoring.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary detection of the number of passengers before determining camera operation status. By detecting passenger count in advance and making a predetermined decision about camera operation based on this information, the system proactively balances privacy and safety needs without requiring continuous adjustment during the ride.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If the camera operates only when multiple passengers are present, then privacy is protected for single passengers, but safety monitoring coverage is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The camera operation is dynamically determined by the passenger count condition. The system adapts its monitoring coverage based on the actual number of passengers, operating selectively rather than continuously or never. This conditional dynamic operation achieves both privacy protection for single passengers and adequate safety monitoring when multiple passengers are present.
Solution Approach 2:
The operational parameter of the camera is changed based on the parameter of passenger count. The system uses passenger count as a threshold parameter to determine whether to activate monitoring, creating a parameter-driven control strategy that balances privacy and safety coverage appropriately for different usage scenarios.
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle is configured to transport a passenger through autonomous travel. The vehicle includes an in-vehicle camera configured to image the passenger to generate an image, a camera controller configured to control the in-vehicle camera, and a passenger information detection unit configured to detect information about the passenger. The passenger information detection unit measures the number of passengers and the camera controller stops an operation of the in-vehicle camera in a case where the number of passengers is one.