JP2002187492A - Camera device used for radiotelephone and radiotelephone equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a camera device used for a radiotelephone without intercepting driver's forward visual field or minding the presence of the camera for an occupant. SOLUTION: A CCD camera device 24 used for transmitting image data with an automobile radiotelephone device 11 is housed in a body 26 of a room mirror 25.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a camera device used for transmitting image data obtained by capturing an image of the interior of a vehicle via a wireless telephone, and a wireless telephone device provided with the camera device.

In recent mobile telephone devices, a CCD camera is provided to image a caller or the like,
In some cases, the image data is transmitted to a portable telephone device of a call destination, and a still image is displayed on a display. Assuming that such a telephone device is applied to a car telephone, as shown in FIG. 6, a CCD camera 1 is mounted on a dashboard 2 which is a front part of a vehicle compartment in order to easily image a driver or a passenger. It is conceivable to install it on the top.

[0004] However, in the installation form of the CCD camera 1 as shown in FIG. 6, there is a problem that the front view of the driver is slightly obstructed and the front is hard to see. Also,
It is also expected that the driver and the passenger in the front passenger seat will be mentally pressed by the CCD camera 1 at all times.

[0003] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a vehicle without obstructing a driver's front view.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a camera device used for a wireless telephone that does not care about the presence of a camera by an occupant, and a wireless telephone device including the camera device.

[0004]

According to the camera device used in the wireless telephone according to the first aspect, the camera of the camera device used for transmitting the image data obtained by imaging the interior of the vehicle is provided with at least a mirror surface. It is placed inside the housing of the room mirror, part of which is a half mirror. That is, the camera can capture an image of the vehicle interior through a portion formed by a mirror half mirror. And as before,
Since the camera does not obstruct the driver's front view, the driver can see ahead more easily. Further, since the driver and the passenger in the passenger seat do not recognize the presence of the camera, it is possible to prevent the driver from feeling mental pressure.

According to the camera device used in the wireless telephone according to the second aspect, the short-range wireless communication unit for transmitting the image data picked up by the camera to the wireless telephone device main body is also provided inside the housing of the room mirror. To place. Therefore, since image data is transmitted to the wireless telephone device main body, no wiring is required, and the camera device can be easily installed. Since the rearview mirror is located at a position with a good view in the vehicle interior, the camera device can satisfactorily communicate with the wireless telephone device main body.

According to the camera device used in the wireless telephone according to the third aspect, the antenna of the short-range wireless communication unit is projected outside the housing of the room mirror, and the occupant of the vehicle is seated on the seat. At the position where the occupant becomes a blind spot. Therefore, the antenna included in the short-range wireless communication unit does not enter the field of view of the occupant, and the aesthetic appearance in the vehicle compartment can be enhanced.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, together with the camera device according to any one of the first to third aspects, a microphone for transmission is arranged inside the housing of the rearview mirror. Therefore, the occupant of the vehicle can use the microphone to transmit a hands-free call used for a wireless telephone.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, since the speaker for receiving a call is also arranged inside the housing of the rearview mirror, the occupant of the vehicle can use the speaker to receive a hands-free call on the wireless telephone. Can be performed.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS First Embodiment A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the mobile telephone device (wireless telephone device) 11. Car telephone equipment 11
Is a wireless device 13 for communicating with another telephone device via an antenna 12, a cradle 14, and a handset 15 detachably mounted on the cradle 14.
(Telephone device body).

The wireless device 13 and the cradle 14 are connected to an I / F
A receiving voice line for transmitting the receiving voice of the calling voice and a transmitting voice line for transmitting the same transmitting voice via the unit 50 and the handset 15;
The wireless device 13 and the handset 15 are connected to the I / F
Various control signals are transmitted via the unit 50.

The I / F unit 50 is, for example, IrDA, US
B, Bluetooth, or an interface for transmitting communication between the wireless device 13 and the handset 15 by an infrared signal, a wired signal, or a wireless signal. Note that these communication protocols may be properly used depending on the attribute of the data to be transferred. For example, since image data and the like have a relatively large data size and are desired to be transferred at a high speed, a USB is used.
rDA or Bluetooth may be used.

The handset 15 includes a voice line control unit 16 inserted into the reception voice line and the transmission voice line to control the reception voice and the transmission voice, and a serial line buffering a serial signal transmitted by the serial communication line. A signal control unit 17, an operation unit 18 that outputs an operation signal in response to operation of various key switches (not shown), and various signals output by these are provided, and a controller 19 that performs control based on the various signals is built in. I have.

The cradle 14 includes a receiving amplifier 20 for amplifying the receiving voice, a speaker 21 for outputting the receiving voice amplified by the receiving amplifier 20, a microphone 22 for receiving the voice of the caller, and a microphone 22. A transmission amplifier 23 for amplifying the input voice is built in.
That is, the speaker 21 and the microphone 22 are built in the cradle 14, so that a so-called hands-free call of the car telephone device 11 by the occupant of the vehicle is enabled.

The controller 19 has a ROM inside.
And a memory 19a including a RAM and the like, and the memory 19a stores voice data for outputting a warning voice to be described later. Then, audio data is read out from the memory 19a as necessary and supplied to the audio line control unit 16, whereby audio is output from the speaker 21.

As shown in FIG. 1, the CCD camera device 24 is housed in a housing 26 of a room mirror 25 installed at the upper front side of the vehicle interior. The room mirror 25 is composed of a half mirror 27, and the CCD camera 28 of the CCD camera device 24 is a half mirror 27.
The occupant and the like in the vehicle cabin can be imaged by receiving the light beam transmitted through the vehicle.

The image data output from the CCD camera device 24 is provided to the wireless device 13 via the image data control unit 29 of the car telephone device 11, and can be transmitted to the outside. When receiving image data transmitted from another telephone device having the same configuration via the I / F unit 50 and the wireless device 13, the image data control unit 29 causes the display 30 to display the image data. It has become.

FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the CCD camera device 24. CCD camera device 24
Is a CCD camera 28, a CCD controller 31, a Bluetooth
A unit (short-range wireless communication unit) 32 and a power supply unit 33 are provided. The Bluetooth unit 32 uses the same Blue
When a control signal transmitted from an external remote controller (not shown) having a tooth unit is received and demodulated via the antenna 32a, the demodulated signal is output to the CCD controller 31.

The CCD controller 31 outputs a signal to the CCD camera 28 to control the CCD camera 28. As shown in FIG. 1B, the antenna 32 a of the Bluetooth unit 32 is
Is arranged so as to protrude to the outside on the lower side. The antenna 32a is located on the back side of the half mirror 27, and is disposed at a position where the occupant of the vehicle is in a blind spot when the occupant is sitting on the seat.

The power supply unit 33 reduces the power supplied from the vehicle battery to about 5 V, and
It is configured to supply the D control unit 31 and the Bluetooth unit 32.

The Bluetooth unit 32 has a CCD
When image data captured by the camera 28 is received via the CCD control unit 31, the image data is transmitted to the image data control unit 29 of the car telephone device 11 by a wireless signal. That is, the image data control unit 29 also has a built-in Bluetooth unit (not shown) inside,
This is performed according to the communication protocol of the tooth.

In addition, when the above-mentioned remote control has a display unit, or when another Bluetooth
h Products such as mobile phone devices, PDAs (Personal Digita
l Assistants) and a car navigation system (neither of which is shown) have an application for performing communication with the CCD camera device 24.
If the image data captured by the D camera 28 is transmitted to those products and the like via the Bluetooth unit 32, the occupant of the vehicle can see the image of the CCD camera 28 displayed on the display unit, and can read the image of the CCD camera 28. You can also check and adjust the gaze direction (so that you are in the picture).

According to the present embodiment configured as described above, the CCD camera device 24 used for transmitting image data by the automobile telephone device 11 is accommodated in the housing 26 of the room mirror 25. The vehicle occupant is C
The CD camera 26 is not seen. Therefore, CCD
It is possible to ride without worrying about the gaze of the camera 26 and feeling mental pressure. Further, since the CCD camera device 24 does not narrow the field of view of the driver, it is possible to drive the vehicle with the field of view well secured.

Further, the Bluetooth is connected to the CCD camera device 24.
Since the unit 32 is provided, no wiring is required to transmit the image data to the mobile telephone device 11, and the CCD camera device 24 can be easily installed. Then, since the rear-view mirror 25 is located at a position with good visibility in the vehicle cabin, wireless communication with the car telephone device 11 can be performed satisfactorily.

According to the present embodiment, the antenna 32 a of the Bluetooth unit 32 is
(6) Since the antenna 32a is projected out of the vehicle and arranged at a position where the vehicle occupant is in a blind spot while the vehicle occupant is in the seat, the antenna 32a does not enter the field of view of the vehicle occupant, and the aesthetic appearance in the vehicle interior can be enhanced. .

(Second Embodiment) FIGS. 4 and 5 show a second embodiment of the present invention. The same parts as those of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted. Will be described only. In the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, the speaker 21 and the microphone 22 built in the cradle 14 are separately provided inside the housing 26 of the room mirror 25.
A speaker 34 for outputting a received voice and a microphone 35 for inputting a voice of a caller are incorporated. The speaker 34 and the microphone 35 are connected via the audio signal processor 36
It is connected to the uetooth unit 37. Where Blue
What replaced the tooth unit 32 with 37 constitutes the CCD camera device 24A.

The microphone 35 is disposed inside the housing 26 at the front (left side in FIG. 4) and below. Further, the speaker 34 is disposed on the rear side inside the housing 26. Although not specifically shown, a hole for voice input and a hole for output are provided in corresponding portions of the housing 26, respectively. In this case, the antenna 37a of the Bluetooth unit 37 is arranged so as to protrude outside above the housing 26 so as to be blind from the occupant, as in the first embodiment.

An audio output signal to the speaker 34 and an audio input signal from the microphone 35 are transmitted to and from a car telephone device 38 (not shown) via a Bluetooth unit 37. A / D conversion, D / A conversion, signal amplification, and the like are performed through the transmission line 36. The other configuration is the same as that of the first embodiment, and the combination of the above configuration and the main body constitutes a mobile telephone device (wireless telephone device) 38.

According to the second embodiment constructed as described above, the receiving speaker 34 and the talking microphone 35 of the car telephone device 38 are built in the housing 26 of the room mirror 25 together with the CCD camera device 24A. Therefore, the occupant of the vehicle can make a hands-free call using the speaker 34 and the microphone 35. In this case, the speaker 21 and the microphone 22 built in the cradle 14
When used together, it is also possible to make a better call.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above and shown in the drawings, and the following modifications or extensions are possible. The inside of the housing 26 is not necessarily CC
It is not necessary to house the entire D camera device 24, but it is sufficient to house at least the CCD camera 28. The portion constituted by the half mirror does not necessarily have to be the entire mirror surface, and it is sufficient that at least the range in which the CCD camera arranged inside the housing can capture an image of the vehicle interior is constituted by the half mirror. Adjustment of the line of sight of the CCD camera 28, focus, zoom up / down, etc. may be performed manually by an occupant of the vehicle by disposing an operator outside the housing 26 of the room mirror 25.

The Bluetooth unit 32 may be set to be a master in a piconet formed with other in-vehicle devices. According to such a configuration, wireless communication with another in-vehicle device can be favorably performed. Bluetoot
The h unit 32 may be provided as needed, and transmission of image data to the mobile phone device 11 may be performed by wire. In the second embodiment, the speaker 21 and the microphone 22 built in the cradle 14 may be provided as needed. In the second embodiment, only the microphone 35 is built in the housing 26 of the room mirror 25,
The speaker for transmission may also be used as the speaker 21 and the other speakers installed in the vehicle interior for other uses.

The camera is not limited to a CCD camera,
For example, a device using a CMOS image sensor or the like may be used. Instead of the I / F unit 50 of the mobile phone device 11, the wireless device 13 and the handset 15
May be connected. The wireless telephone device is a car telephone device 1
The number is not limited to one and may be a mobile phone device or the like. The short-range wireless communication unit is not limited to the one using Bluetooth, but may employ another short-range wireless communication system.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a view showing an arrangement state of a CCD camera device inside a housing of a room mirror according to a first embodiment of the present invention;
(A) is an external view of a vehicle interior, (b) is a longitudinal side view of a room mirror.

FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing an electric configuration of the CCD camera device.

FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the mobile phone device.

FIG. 4 is a view corresponding to FIG. 1 (b) showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram corresponding to FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a diagram corresponding to FIG.

[Description of Signs] 11 is a car telephone device (wireless telephone device), 24, 24A
Is a CCD camera device (camera device), 25 is a room mirror, 26 is a housing, 27 is a half mirror, 28 is a CCD camera, 32 is a Bluetooth unit (short-range wireless communication unit), 34 is a speaker, 35 is a microphone, 37 Is Bluetoot
h unit (short-range wireless communication unit), 38 denotes an automobile telephone device (wireless telephone device).

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Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A camera device used for transmitting image data obtained by capturing an image of the interior of a vehicle via a wireless telephone, wherein at least a part of a mirror surface is provided inside a housing of a room mirror having a half mirror. A camera device used for a wireless telephone, comprising a camera. 2. A short-range wireless communication unit for transmitting image data captured by the camera to a wireless telephone device main body, wherein the short-range wireless communication unit is also arranged inside a housing of the room mirror. The camera device used in a wireless telephone according to claim 1, wherein: 3. The antenna included in the short-range wireless communication unit projects outside the housing of the room mirror, and is disposed at a position where the occupant of the vehicle is in a blind spot from the occupant in a state where the occupant is in a seat. 3. A camera device used in a wireless telephone according to claim 2, wherein: 4. A wireless telephone device, wherein a microphone for transmission is arranged inside a housing of the room mirror together with the camera device used for the wireless telephone according to claim 1. . 5. The wireless telephone device according to claim 4, wherein a speaker for receiving a call is also arranged inside the housing of said room mirror.