Vehicle Surround Image Correction for Blind-Spot-Free Digital Mirrors

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Solution Overview

Problem

Side view mirrors on vehicles have a narrow angle of view, leading to blind spots, and digital side mirrors using cameras and displays can fail due to system errors, necessitating improved image processing to enhance visibility and reliability.

Innovation Solution

An image processing device and method using a camera module with wide-angle lenses, including multiple cameras installed on the vehicle, processes images to correct circularly curved views into flat images, dividing and merging them based on driving modes to ensure comprehensive surveillance without blind spots.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If multiple cameras are installed to achieve 360° visibility and eliminate blind spots, then surveillance coverage is improved, but device complexity and cost increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesurveillance coverageVSAvoidnumber of cameras

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

A single camera equipped with a wide-angle lens is designed to perform multiple functions that would traditionally require multiple cameras. The camera captures images in all directions (front, rear, left, right) simultaneously, achieving 360° surveillance coverage with one device, thereby reducing system complexity while maintaining comprehensive monitoring capability

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Solution Approach 2:

The focal length parameter of the camera lens is changed to a wide-angle configuration (short focal length) to expand the field of view. This parameter change enables a single camera to capture a much broader angular range, effectively replacing multiple standard cameras and achieving omnidirectional coverage with reduced hardware

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

2Reliability

If multiple cameras are installed to achieve 360° visibility, then blind spots are eliminated, but vehicle weight increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesurveillance coverageVSAvoidvehicle weight

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSWeight of moving object

Solution Approach 1:

Multiple camera functions are merged into a single camera system. Instead of installing separate cameras for front, rear, left, and right monitoring, one wide-angle camera integrates all these functions, significantly reducing the total weight of the surveillance system while maintaining 360° coverage capability

Inventive Principle:

Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The single wide-angle camera is designed to serve multiple surveillance purposes simultaneously (front view, rear view, side views), replacing what would traditionally require four separate camera units. This multi-functionality reduces the overall weight of the imaging system while achieving comprehensive blind-spot elimination

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

3Reliability

If wide-angle lens is used to capture all directions, then surveillance coverage is improved, but image distortion increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesurveillance coverageVSAvoidimage distortion

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

An image processing unit acts as an intermediary between the wide-angle lens and the final output. This processing unit applies distortion correction algorithms to the captured images, removing the geometric distortion introduced by the wide-angle lens and producing corrected images that maintain both wide coverage and accurate spatial representation

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The mechanical/optical distortion inherent in wide-angle lenses is replaced by digital/image processing correction. Instead of relying on optical perfection, the system uses computational methods to correct distortion, allowing the use of extreme wide-angle lenses while maintaining image geometric accuracy through software processing

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

4Ease of manufacture

If wide-angle lens is used to reduce number of cameras, then cost is reduced, but image correction complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesystem costVSAvoidimage correction processing

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of manufactureVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The physical complexity of installing and aligning multiple cameras is replaced by digital image correction processing. The system uses software-based distortion correction and image stitching algorithms to achieve multi-directional coverage, trading mechanical simplicity for computational processing that is more cost-effective and easier to implement

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

Data Source

PatentUS20260038082A1Image processing device and method that captures the surroundings of a vehicle

Publication Date: 2026.02.05 THINKWARE

AI summary

An image processing device for capturing surroundings of a vehicle includes a camera module that is installed in the vehicle and includes a plurality of cameras equipped with wide-angle lenses, an electronic device that processes an image acquired through the camera module, in which the electronic device includes: a communication circuit, an image input unit that receive captured vehicle surrounding images through the communication circuit, an image conversion unit that correct the vehicle surrounding images received by the image input unit, and a control unit that controls the communication circuit, the image input unit, and the image conversion unit, and the image conversion unit may be controlled through the control unit so that an overview screen in a circularly curved shape captured by the camera module is corrected into a flat image.