Vehicle Occupant Overlay on Electronic Mirror Display
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle occupant viewing systems struggle to intuitively display occupant images to drivers without obstructing other functionalities, particularly in integrating rear seat occupant views with forward-facing camera orientations and positions.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle occupant viewing system comprising interior cameras and a video processing unit that overlays occupant images onto an image display unit, such as an electronic display mirror, adjusting for camera orientations and occupant positions to provide real-time, intuitive views of vehicle occupants without requiring the driver to look away from the road.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If additional information is displayed on the image display unit to supplement the driver's view, then the driver receives more information about vehicle operations and surroundings, but the display may obstruct other functionalities and reduce driver attention to the road
Solution Approach 1:
The system overlays occupant images as a transparent or semi-transparent layer on top of the existing rearview camera feed or other display content, rather than creating separate full-screen displays. This dimensional layering allows multiple information types to coexist in the same visual space without completely blocking each other, enabling the driver to see both the road behind and occupant status simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
The occupant images are displayed in specific localized regions of the image display unit rather than uniformly across the entire display. The system can position occupant images in corners or along edges of the display area, preserving the central region for critical road viewing while providing occupant information in peripheral zones that are less critical for immediate driving attention.
2Ease of operation
If the system integrates occupant images with rear view feeds, then the driver can monitor occupants without looking away from the road, but the system complexity increases due to multiple cameras and processing requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The image display unit serves multiple functions: it displays the rearview camera feed for traffic monitoring, overlays occupant images for passenger monitoring, and can potentially display other vehicle information. This multi-functionality consolidates what would otherwise require separate display systems into a single unified interface, reducing overall system complexity while maintaining comprehensive monitoring capabilities.
Solution Approach 2:
The system merges the rearview camera feed and occupant camera feeds into a single composite display output. The video processing unit combines multiple video streams and overlays them in real-time, creating a unified visual presentation that eliminates the need for separate display devices for each function.
3Measurement precision
If the system adjusts display based on camera orientations and occupant positions, then the occupant views become more intuitive and accurate, but the processing requirements and computational load increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-determines and stores the relative positions and orientations of multiple cameras with respect to the vehicle interior and occupant seating positions during system initialization or calibration. This preliminary geometric mapping allows the video processing unit to quickly retrieve and apply transformation parameters during real-time operation without performing complex calculations for each frame, significantly reducing computational load while maintaining positioning accuracy.
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle occupant viewing system and a corresponding method for displaying a vehicle occupant on an image display unit. The system may comprise one or more vehicle interior cameras for obtaining occupant images of one or more occupants in rear seats of the vehicle. The system may include two vehicle interior cameras, one in a forward facing orientation and another in a rear facing orientation, which can capture occupant images of occupants in forward facing positions and occupants in rear facing positions such as infants in car seats. The system may also include one or more modular vehicle interior cameras that are moveable between various orientations in order to capture occupant images of either forward or rear facing passengers. Adjustments can be made to display the occupant images to the driver in a more intuitive arrangement.