Drive Recorder Single Camera Imaging Condition Segmentation
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Solution Overview
Problem
A single camera struggles to capture multiple areas inside and outside a vehicle effectively due to varying imaging conditions such as exposure and white balance, making it difficult to image all areas properly.
Innovation Solution
A drive recorder system that uses a single camera to capture images in different frames with distinct imaging conditions for inside and outside areas, including a passenger detector to enhance visibility of passengers, allowing for separate and optimized image processing and display.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a single camera is used to image multiple areas inside and outside the vehicle, then the device complexity is reduced, but the imaging quality across different areas deteriorates due to varying exposure and white balance conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the image data into multiple image areas (first image area and second image area) corresponding to different spatial regions inside and outside the vehicle. Different imaging conditions are determined for each segmented area, allowing optimized exposure and white balance settings for each region while using a single camera system.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different imaging conditions (exposure, white balance, brightness) to different image areas based on their specific characteristics. The first imaging condition is determined with reference to the first image area, and the second imaging condition is determined with reference to the second image area, ensuring each region is imaged with locally optimized parameters.
2Manufacturing precision
If different imaging conditions are applied to different areas, then the imaging quality for each area is improved, but the system complexity increases due to multiple imaging conditions management
Solution Approach 1:
The imaging condition determiner automatically determines appropriate imaging conditions for each image area based on the captured image data itself. The system self-adjusts exposure, white balance, and brightness parameters for different areas without requiring manual intervention or complex external control systems, reducing the burden of imaging condition management.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic adjustment of imaging conditions where the camera captures images with different imaging conditions in temporally different frames. The imaging conditions can change over time and adapt to varying lighting conditions in different areas, allowing flexible management of multiple imaging conditions through temporal multiplexing.
3Device complexity
If a single camera captures both interior and exterior images, then the cost and complexity are reduced, but the visibility of passengers in the interior may be insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies a second imaging condition specifically optimized for the second image area where passengers are located, with reference to passenger detection results. This includes adjusting exposure, white balance, and brightness parameters to enhance passenger visibility while the first imaging condition optimizes exterior scene capture.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the image processing into different pathways: one for exterior monitoring and another for passenger monitoring. The image processor generates passenger images with enhanced visibility from the second image data, while separate moving image data is generated from the first image data for exterior monitoring, allowing optimized processing for each purpose.
Data Source
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AI summary
A drive recorder 10 includes: an image acquisition interface that acquires image data captured by a camera 42 mounted to a vehicle; an imaging condition determiner that determines a first imaging condition defined with reference to a first image area in the image data and determines a second imaging condition defined with reference to a second image area in the image data; an imaging controller that causes the camera to capture a first image, in which the first imaging condition is used, and a second image, in which the second imaging condition is used, in temporally different frames; an image recorder that records moving image data based on the first image; a passenger detector that detects a passenger in the vehicle; an image processor that generates, based on the second image including the passenger detected by the passenger detector, a passenger image in which visibility of an image portion including the passenger is higher than in the second image; and a display controller that causes the display device to display moving images based on the passenger image.