JP2002104114A - Front obstacle confirming system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a front obstacle confirming system capable of easily confirming the front of a vehicle which becomes a blind spot. SOLUTION: This front obstacle confirming system is provided with an image pickup means 13 mounted on the front of the vehicle 11 for imaging the front of the vehicle 11 which becomes a blind spot from a driver's seat and a display mans 14 mounted in a vehicle compartment for displaying image information imaged by the image pickup means 13 on a display screen 14a. A mask image 20 corresponding to a visual observation area directly viewed from the driver's seat is displayed in the image information displayed on the display screen 14a. On detecting a start signal of an engine 22 by an image signal processing part 15, the image information is displayed on the display screen 14a.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a forward obstacle confirming system which is mounted on a vehicle such as an automobile and enables a blind spot in front of the vehicle to be confirmed from the passenger compartment.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As shown in FIG. 7, in a vehicle 1 such as an automobile, a dashboard and a hood 2 usually obstruct the view of a driver 3, and as a result, a blind spot is formed in a lower front part of the vehicle 1.

Therefore, before starting the parked vehicle 1, it is necessary to confirm whether or not the obstacle 4 exists in front of the vehicle 1.

[0004]

However, the vehicle 1
If the vehicle 1 is started without confirming whether the obstacle 4 is present in front of the vehicle 1 and without checking whether the obstacle 4 is present, if the obstacle 4 is present, The vehicle 1 may collide with the object 4 and cause an accident.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a forward obstacle confirming system capable of easily confirming the front of a vehicle at a blind spot.

[0006]

Technical means for solving the above-mentioned problems include an image pickup means mounted at the front of the vehicle and for taking an image of the front of the vehicle at a blind spot from the driver's seat, and mounted in the vehicle interior. And display means for displaying image information taken by the imaging means on a display screen.

[0007] In the image information displayed on the display screen, a mask image may be displayed corresponding to a viewing area directly visible from the driver's seat.

Further, by detecting the start signal of the engine,
The image information may be displayed on the display screen.

The image information may be displayed on the display screen by detecting an ON signal of an accessory power supply.

[0010] Furthermore, after a predetermined timer set time has elapsed after the display of the image information on the display screen, the display screen may be turned off or switched to another screen display.

Further, after the image information is displayed on the display screen, the display of the display screen may be turned off or switched to another screen display by detecting a shift position change signal.

Further, after the image information is displayed on the display screen, detection of a parking brake release signal allows
A structure in which the display of the display screen is turned off or switched to another screen display may be employed.

[0013]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. As shown in FIGS.
And an LCD provided at a position such as an instrument panel in a vehicle compartment that is easily visible to a driver to display image information captured by the image capturing means 13. (Liquid crystal display), a display unit 14 having a display screen 14a such as a CRT, and an image signal processing unit 15 that converts an image signal captured by the imaging unit 13 into a predetermined display signal and supplies the display signal to the display unit 14 And

A navigation device 16 capable of recognizing the position of the vehicle 11 is also mounted, and this navigation information is also displayed on the display means 14 via the image signal processing unit 15.
Is displayed on the display screen 14a.

The image pickup means 13 is mainly composed of, for example, a CCD camera, and, as shown in FIG. 2, for picking up an image of a blind spot area in the lower front part of the vehicle 11 where the view of the driver 18 is blocked by a dashboard or hood 17. , Is installed.

When displaying image information picked up by the image pickup means 13 on the display screen 14a of the display means 14, the image signal processing section 15 includes a driver 18 in the driver's seat.
The mask image 20 is overwritten with a predetermined pattern corresponding to a viewing area that can be directly viewed from the camera. At this time, the area of the mask image 20 is configured to represent a range of a road surface that can be visually observed when, for example, a driver 18 of a standard physique sits in a driver's seat.

Further, as shown in FIG.
2 is configured to be input to the image signal processing unit 15.

When the driver 18 starts the engine 22, a start signal is input to the image signal processing unit 15, and the image signal processing unit 15 detects the input of the start signal and outputs the start signal to the front obstacle confirmation system. When the power is turned on, the imaging by the imaging unit 13 is started, and the image information captured by the imaging unit 13 is displayed together with the mask image 20 on the display unit 1.
4 to be displayed on the display screen 14a. Also,
The image signal processing unit 15 has a timer function. When the display of the display screen 14a is started, the timer starts, and a predetermined timer setting time (for example,
When one minute has elapsed, the power of the forward obstacle confirmation system is controlled to be turned off, and the imaging by the imaging unit 13 is stopped and the display on the display screen 14a is stopped.

When the power of the navigation device 16 is turned on, navigation information is displayed on the display screen 14a via the image signal processing unit 15.

The present embodiment is configured as described above. When the driver 18 sits on the driver's seat and starts the engine 22, the power supply of the forward obstacle confirmation system is automatically turned on, and Vehicle 11
The image information of the front blind spot area is displayed on the display screen 14a of the display unit 14 together with the mask image 20.

Therefore, there is no need to go outside the vehicle and check for the presence of the obstacle 24.
4a, the blind spot area ahead of the vehicle 11 can always be confirmed,
The presence or absence of the obstacle 24 can be easily and reliably confirmed.

At this time, if the image information picked up by the image pickup means 13 is displayed on the display screen 14a as it is, it can be recognized that some obstacle 24 exists, but its position is difficult to intuitively understand. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, corresponding to a viewing area that can be viewed from the driver's seat,
Since the mask image 20 is displayed on the display screen 14a, there is an advantage that it is possible to more intuitively understand that the obstacle 24 exists behind the hood 17 of the vehicle.

FIG. 4 shows a second embodiment, in which the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted.

That is, in the present embodiment, the engine 2
The configuration is such that an on signal of the accessory power supply 26 is input to the image signal processing unit 15 instead of the start signal of No. 2.

Then, when the driver 18 inserts the key of the car into the ignition switch and turns the accessory, the accessory power supply 26 is turned on, and the ON signal is input to the image signal processing unit 15, and the image signal processing unit 15 , The input of the ON signal is detected, the power of the forward obstacle confirmation system is turned on, and the imaging by the imaging means 13 is started,
The image information picked up by the image pickup means 13 is controlled to be displayed on the display screen 14a of the display means 14 together with the mask image 20. When a predetermined timer set time elapses by the timer function of the image signal processing unit 15, the power of the forward obstacle confirmation system is controlled to be turned off, and the imaging by the imaging unit 13 is stopped and the display screen 14a is stopped. Is stopped.

Here, in this embodiment, similarly to the first embodiment, when the driver 18 sits in the driver's seat and turns the key inserted into the ignition switch,
The power of the front obstacle confirmation system is automatically turned on, and the image information of the blind spot area in front of the vehicle 11 captured by the image capturing unit 13 is displayed together with the mask image 20 on the display unit 14.
Is displayed on the display screen 14a.

Therefore, it is not necessary to go out of the vehicle and check the presence or absence of the obstacle 24. When the accessory power supply 26 is turned on, the display screen 14a can always check the blind spot area in front of the vehicle 11 and easily determine the presence or absence of the obstacle 24. , The mask image 20 displayed on the display screen 14a can be surely confirmed.
Accordingly, there is an advantage that it is possible to more intuitively understand that the obstacle 24 exists behind the hood 17 of the own vehicle.

FIG. 5 shows a third embodiment, in which the same components as those in the second embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted.

That is, in the present embodiment, the image signal processing section 15 does not have a timer function, and the position signal of the shift position 28 of the shift shift is transmitted to the image signal processing section 15.
It is configured to be inputted to.

Then, the position of the shift position 28 is
For example, when the position signal input to the image signal processing unit 15 is switched, for example, by switching from parking to driving, a change signal of the shift position 28 is detected. The power is controlled to be turned off, so that the imaging by the imaging unit 13 is stopped and the display on the display screen 14a is stopped.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, when the driver 18 inserts the key of the car into the ignition switch and turns the accessory, the accessory power supply 26 is turned on, and the ON signal is input to the image signal processing unit 15. , The image signal processing unit 15 detects the input of the ON signal,
Turn on the power of the forward obstacle confirmation system, and
Is started, and control is performed so that the image information captured by the imaging unit 13 is displayed on the display screen 14a of the display unit 14 together with the mask image 20. Here, vehicle 1
The presence or absence of the obstacle 24 in the blind spot area in front of 1 can be confirmed. After the confirmation, when the shift position 28 is switched from parking to driving in order to start the vehicle 11, the image signal processing unit 15
Is detected, the power of the front obstacle confirmation system is turned off, the imaging by the imaging means 13 is stopped, and the display on the display screen 14a is stopped.

Here, in this embodiment, similarly to the second embodiment, when the driver 18 sits in the driver's seat and turns the key inserted into the ignition switch,
The power of the front obstacle confirmation system is automatically turned on, and the image information of the blind spot area in front of the vehicle 11 captured by the image capturing unit 13 is displayed together with the mask image 20 on the display unit 14.
Is displayed on the display screen 14a.

Therefore, there is no need to go out of the vehicle and check for the presence of the obstacle 24. When the accessory power supply 26 is turned on, the display screen 14a can always check the blind spot area in front of the vehicle 11, and the presence or absence of the obstacle 24 can be easily determined. , The mask image 20 displayed on the display screen 14a can be surely confirmed.
Accordingly, there is an advantage that it is possible to more intuitively understand that the obstacle 24 exists behind the hood 17 of the own vehicle.

Even if it takes time to start after starting the engine 22, if the shift position 28 is not changed, the forward obstacle confirmation system is maintained in the ON state. Vehicle 1 until just before starting operation
A blind spot area ahead of the user can be confirmed.

FIG. 6 shows a fourth embodiment, in which the same components as those of the second embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted.

That is, in the present embodiment, the image signal processing unit 15 does not have a timer function, and the signals in each of the lock / release states of the parking brake 30 are input to the image signal processing unit 15. It is configured.

When the parking brake 30 is released, a release signal is input to the image signal processing section 15, where the image signal processing section 15 detects the release signal of the parking brake 30, and detects the release signal. The power of the forward obstacle confirmation system is turned off by the
Is stopped, and the display on the display screen 14a is stopped.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, when the driver 18 inserts the key of the car into the ignition switch and turns the accessory, the accessory power supply 26 is turned on, and the ON signal is input to the image signal processing unit 15. , The image signal processing unit 15 detects the input of the ON signal,
Turn on the power of the forward obstacle confirmation system, and
Is started, and control is performed so that the image information captured by the imaging unit 13 is displayed on the display screen 14a of the display unit 14 together with the mask image 20. Here, vehicle 1
The presence or absence of the obstacle 24 in the blind spot area in front of 1 can be confirmed. After the confirmation, if the parking brake 30 is released from the locked state in order to start the vehicle 11, the image signal processing unit 15 detects the release signal of the parking brake 30, and the power of the forward obstacle confirmation system is turned off. And
The imaging by the imaging means 13 is stopped and the display screen 1 is displayed.
The display by 4a is stopped.

Here, in this embodiment, similarly to the second embodiment, when the driver 18 sits in the driver's seat and turns the key inserted into the ignition switch,
The power of the front obstacle confirmation system is automatically turned on, and the image information of the blind spot area in front of the vehicle 11 captured by the image capturing unit 13 is displayed together with the mask image 20 on the display unit 14.
Is displayed on the display screen 14a.

Therefore, it is not necessary to go out of the vehicle and check for the presence of the obstacle 24. When the accessory power supply 26 is turned on, the blind area in front of the vehicle 11 can always be checked by the display screen 14a. , The mask image 20 displayed on the display screen 14a can be surely confirmed.
Accordingly, there is an advantage that it is possible to more intuitively understand that the obstacle 24 exists behind the hood 17 of the own vehicle.

Even if it takes a long time to start after the engine 22 is started, the parking brake 30
Is not operated, the front obstacle confirmation system is maintained in the ON state, and the blind spot area in front of the vehicle 11 can be confirmed until immediately before the start operation.

In each of the above embodiments, the power of the forward obstacle confirmation system is simply turned off after the timer set time elapses by the timer function, by detecting the change signal of the shift position 28, or by detecting the release signal of the parking brake 30. It discloses a structure in which the image capturing by the image capturing means 13 is stopped and the display on the display screen 14a is stopped, but after the elapse of the timer set time by the timer function, the detection of the change signal of the shift position 28, and the parking brake A structure may be employed in which the imaging unit 13 is turned off by detecting the release signal of 30 and the image displayed on the display screen 14a is automatically switched to the image of the navigation device 16.

In this case, there is no need to manually switch to navigation information such as a map, and there is an advantage that the usability is excellent.

Further, the present invention is not limited to the structure for automatically switching and controlling the image to the image of the navigation device 16, but the display screen 14a of the display means 14 according to the function mounted on the vehicle 11.
May be automatically switched to another information screen such as a television.

[0045]

As described above, according to the front obstacle confirmation system of the present invention, the image pickup means is mounted on the front of the vehicle and captures an image of the front of the vehicle at a blind spot from the driver's seat, and is mounted in the vehicle interior. And display means for displaying image information taken by the image pickup means on a display screen,
There is an advantage that it is not necessary to go outside the vehicle and check for the presence of an obstacle in front of the vehicle, and it is possible to easily check for the presence or absence of an obstacle in the blind spot area in front of the vehicle on the display screen of the display means.

Further, if the image information displayed on the display screen has a structure in which a mask image is displayed corresponding to a viewing area that can be directly viewed from the driver's seat, an obstacle is hidden behind the hood of the own vehicle. When it exists, there is an advantage that its location can be understood more intuitively.

Further, if the image information is displayed on the display screen by detecting the start signal of the engine or the ON signal of the accessory power supply, the front obstacle confirmation system is automatically turned on at the time of starting the vehicle. In addition, there is an advantage that it is possible to more surely check an obstacle in front of the vehicle without neglecting it.

Further, after the image information is displayed on the display screen, after a predetermined timer set time has elapsed, after the image information is displayed on the display screen, a shift position change signal is detected, and after the image information is displayed on the display screen, parking is performed. If the display of the display screen is controlled to be turned off or switched to another screen display by detecting the brake release signal, there is an advantage that the usability is more excellent.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory side view of the same.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the front obstacle confirmation system.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a forward obstacle confirmation system according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a forward obstacle confirmation system according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a forward obstacle confirmation system according to a fourth embodiment.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 11 vehicle 13 imaging means 14 display means 14a display screen 15 image signal processing unit 16 navigation device 17 bonnet 18 driver 20 mask image 22 engine 24 obstacle 26 accessory power supply 28 shift position 30 parking brake

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuing from the front page (72) Inventor Hideo Kato 1-7-10 Kikuzumi, Minami-ku, Nagoya-shi, Aichi F-term in Harness Research Institute, Inc. (reference) 5C054 AA01 AA05 CA04 CC03 CE01 CE11 CH01 EA01 EA05 FE12 HA30 5H180 AA01 CC04 LL01 LL02 LL08 LL15

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. An image pickup means mounted on a front part of a vehicle and for taking an image of the front of the vehicle at a blind spot from a driver's seat, and a display mounted in a vehicle interior and displaying image information taken by the image pickup means on a display screen. And a means for confirming a forward obstacle. 2. The front obstacle according to claim 1, wherein a mask image is displayed in the image information displayed on the display screen in correspondence with a viewing area directly visible from the driver's seat. Object confirmation system. 3. The front obstacle confirmation system according to claim 1, wherein the image information is displayed on the display screen in response to detection of an engine start signal. 4. The front obstacle confirmation system according to claim 1, wherein the image information is displayed on the display screen by detecting an ON signal of an accessory power supply. 5. A display device according to claim 3, wherein after a predetermined timer set time has elapsed after the display of the image information on the display screen, the display of the display screen is controlled to be turned off or switched to another screen display. Or the forward obstacle confirmation system according to 4. 6. The display control device according to claim 3, wherein after the image information is displayed on the display screen, the display of the display screen is controlled to be turned off or switched to another screen display by detecting a shift position change signal. 4. The forward obstacle confirmation system according to 4. 7. The display control device according to claim 3, wherein after the image information is displayed on the display screen, display of the display screen is controlled to be turned off or switched to another screen display by detecting a parking brake release signal. 4. The forward obstacle confirmation system according to 4.