Vehicle Occupant Head Tracking with Multi-Camera Range Selection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing systems for determining the head orientation and position of vehicle occupants in vehicles face challenges in achieving high precision across all head positions, which affects the reliability of safety systems such as airbag deployment and overall driving safety.
Innovation Solution
The method involves using multiple imaging sensors with pre-determined detection ranges to select the most precise data for determining head orientation and position, combining data from 2D and 3D cameras to enhance precision, and implementing a control unit with advanced processing capabilities for data fusion and confidence level assessment to optimize safety system actuation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a single imaging sensor is used to determine head orientation and position, then the device complexity is reduced, but the measurement precision deteriorates across different head positions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the detection space into multiple detection ranges, each associated with a specific imaging sensor. Each sensor is responsible for a particular region (e.g., left, center, right detection ranges), and the system selects the sensor whose detection range contains the target object. This segmentation allows each sensor to optimize for its specific region, maintaining high precision without requiring all sensors to cover all areas simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically selects which imaging sensor to use based on the real-time position of the head within different detection ranges. The control unit determines which detection range the head falls into and activates only the corresponding sensor, allowing the system to adapt to changing conditions while maintaining precision and reducing overall complexity.
2Measurement precision
If multiple imaging sensors are used to improve precision across all head positions, then the measurement precision improves, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Each imaging sensor is optimized for its specific detection range with locally appropriate characteristics. For example, sensors in different positions may have different fields of view, resolutions, or orientations tailored to their respective regions. This allows each sensor to provide high-quality measurements for its local area without requiring all sensors to be universally optimized for all positions.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses only the necessary subset of sensors required for the current detection task. Instead of continuously utilizing all available sensors, the control unit activates only the sensor whose detection range contains the target, reducing computational load and system complexity while maintaining measurement precision when needed.
3Reliability
If detection ranges are determined for multiple sensors, then the reliability of safety system actuation improves, but the loss of time for processing and selecting sensor data increases
Solution Approach 1:
The detection ranges for all imaging sensors are predetermined and stored in advance before actual operation. The control unit has pre-available information about which sensor covers which spatial region, eliminating the need for real-time range calculation. When a head position is detected, the system can immediately query the pre-stored detection range information to identify the appropriate sensor, significantly reducing processing time while maintaining reliable actuation decisions.
Data Source
AI summary
Determining head orientation and/or position of a vehicle occupant includes determining a first detection range for head orientations and/or positions of a first imagining sensor located in the vehicle interior based on various head orientations and/or positions in relation to the location of the first sensor, determining the second detection range of the second imaging sensor for head orientations and/or positions based on various head orientations and/or positions in relation to the position of the second sensor, and, based on the head orientation and/or position of the vehicle occupant, determining the head orientation and/or position with that sensor that has a detection range in which the head orientation and/or position can be better determined than in the detection range of another sensor.