In-Vehicle Camera Shield Detection With Proximity Filtering
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing in-vehicle camera systems risk erroneously determining a shield state due to foreign matter when the camera image resembles a uniform snow wall, leading to potential misinterpretation.
Innovation Solution
An in-vehicle camera shield state determination device that includes a proximity determination unit to assess if an object is close to the vehicle, preventing erroneous shield state determinations by integrating vehicle speed, radar sensor data, and image processing to differentiate between actual shield states and proximity effects.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If shield detection is performed using image processing of captured images, then shielded areas due to foreign matter can be detected, but false positives occur when objects are close to the vehicle
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines shield detection results from image processing with proximity detection results from external sensors to make a comprehensive determination of camera shield state. This merging of multiple detection methods allows the system to distinguish between actual foreign matter shields and false positives caused by nearby objects, thereby improving both detection accuracy and determination reliability
Solution Approach 2:
The proximity determination unit acts as an intermediary that provides contextual information about objects near the vehicle. By introducing this intermediate detection layer, the system can filter out false positive shield detections that occur when objects are simply close to the vehicle rather than actually shielding the camera lens
2Measurement precision
If shield detection is performed on captured images, then camera shield state can be determined, but unnecessary image processing occurs when objects are close to the vehicle
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs proximity detection using external sensors before conducting shield detection through image processing. This preliminary action allows the system to identify situations where objects are close to the vehicle and potentially cause false positives, enabling the shield detection unit to skip unnecessary image processing in those cases and improve overall processing efficiency
Data Source
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AI summary
Provided is an in-vehicle camera shield state determination device which determines a shield state of an external camera of a vehicle, the device determines whether or not shield is detected by image processing of a captured image, determines whether or not an object is close to the vehicle in an imaging direction of the external camera, based on a detection result of an external sensor of the vehicle, determines whether or not the external camera is in the shield state, based on a detection result of a shield detection unit and a determination result of a proximity determination unit, and even if shield is detected by image processing of the captured image, when it is determined that the object is close to the vehicle in the imaging direction of the external camera, it is not determined that the external camera is in the shield state.