Virtual Top-Down View Synthesis for Front Curb Parking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Drivers face challenges in accurately judging the position of a vehicle relative to obstacles like curbs during parking due to the obstruction from the vehicle's front, leading to potential damage from hitting the curb, as existing systems do not provide optimized and distortion-corrected frontal images.
Innovation Solution
A system and method for creating an enhanced virtual top-down view using images from left-front and right-front cameras, correcting for artificial body part protrusion, low resolution, image noise, and 'double vision' effects, providing drivers with a precise positioning aid by synthesizing and processing images to remove distortions inherent in wide-angle lens images.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If wide-angle lens images are used to capture the area in front of the vehicle, then the field of view is improved, but distortion and exaggerated perspective effects are introduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies de-warping calculations that transform the wide-angle lens images by changing the geometric parameters of the image coordinates. This mathematical transformation corrects the distortion by remapping pixels from the distorted wide-angle projection to a corrected perspective, effectively removing the exaggerated perspective effects while preserving the expanded field of view
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary de-warping calculation as a processing step between image capture and display. This intermediary transformation layer acts as a mediator that converts the distorted wide-angle images into corrected views, allowing the system to benefit from both the wide field of view and the corrected geometry
2Manufacturing precision
If de-warping calculations are applied to correct distortion, then image distortion is improved, but artificial protrusion of vehicle body parts and double vision effects are introduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes the harmful artifacts (artificial protrusions and double vision effects) from the de-warped image. This is achieved by identifying regions affected by these artifacts and selectively removing or correcting them, separating the desired distortion correction from the unwanted side effects
Solution Approach 2:
The patent converts the harmful double vision effect into a beneficial feature by using the duplicate information to improve image quality. The system detects corresponding features in the double-vision regions and uses this redundancy to enhance image detail and reduce noise, transforming what was originally a defect into an advantage
3Ease of operation
If images are synthesized from multiple cameras to create top-down view, then viewing perspective is improved, but low resolution and image noise in view edges occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges images from multiple camera sources (left-front and right-front cameras) to create the enhanced virtual top-down view. By combining the image data from these separate sources, the system synthesizes a comprehensive top-down perspective that covers the entire area in front of the vehicle, improving the overall viewing perspective through integration of multiple views
Data Source
AI summary
A system and method for creating an enhanced virtual top-down view of an area in front of a vehicle, using images from left-front and right-front cameras. The enhanced virtual top-down view not only provides the driver with a top-down view perspective which is not directly available from raw camera images, but also removes the distortion and exaggerated perspective effects which are inherent in wide-angle lens images. The enhanced virtual top-down view also includes corrections for three types of problems which are typically present in de-warped images—including artificial protrusion of vehicle body parts into the image, low resolution and noise around the edges of the image, and a “double vision” effect for objects above ground level.