JP2006205932A - Car washing machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a car washing machine with a camera device capable of obtaining a clear image using an inexpensive photographing means and certainly recognizing a license plate position of an automobile by the photographing means. <P>SOLUTION: The car washing machine is provided with CCD 14 for photographing a front surface including the license plate of the automobile to be washed; an optical filter 14 arranged at an image-photographing side of the CCD 14; lighting devices 11, 12 for illuminating an image-photographing area of the CCD 14; an image processing board 21 for extracting the license plate of the automobile from the image photographed by the CCD 14; and a car washing control board 20 for controlling a car washing treatment device relative to the license plate recognized by the image processing board 21. The CCD 14 is made to an image-photographing element sensitive to IR, the lighting devices 11, 12 are made to a light source for irradiating an IR ray and the optical filter is made to a visible light-cut filter. The CCD 14 is mounted to an upper rear side of a car washing machine body 1 in the state that it is inclined from a just below direction to a front side of the car washing machine by a predetermined angle. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a car wash machine that cleans the body surface of a car by relative movement between the car wash machine and the car, and more particularly to a car wash machine that includes means for imaging the car from above the car wash machine body.

  Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 6-206519 is known as a car wash machine equipped with an imaging device. This car wash machine includes a camera device for photographing a car from above and from the side, and performs image processing on an image captured by the camera device based on the gray signal, and performs various car wash processes along the contour of the vehicle body obtained thereby. The device is configured to approach and perform a car wash. According to this device, protrusions (carriers, door mirrors, fender mirrors, etc.) protruding from the contour of the vehicle body can be determined, and the cleaning brush and the drying nozzle can be contacted and separated along the vehicle body contour including the protrusions. It is.

  The camera device used in the car wash machine is not provided with an optical filter, and the imaging environment is easily influenced by external factors such as time zone, weather, headlights, outdoor lights, etc., and it is difficult to take a clear image. Further, considering the chromatic aberration of a general lens and the charge diffusibility of an image sensor, if the transmission wavelength is not limited, it is likely to cause defocusing and it is difficult to capture a clear image.

Further, the car wash machine does not have a camera device that images the front of the automobile including the license plate, and cannot recognize the position of the automobile license plate. In this regard, a device for recognizing a license plate of a vehicle is publicly known (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-316405, etc.). However, when this device is employed in a car wash machine, there is a problem in which position of the car wash machine is arranged. And since the position of the camera device in the car wash machine becomes a reference when calculating the distance of the control position of each car wash processing device from the license plate position in the image captured by the camera device, it needs to be uniquely fixed. There is a method of moving to an appropriate position during imaging.
JP-A-6-206519 JP 11-316405 A

  Accordingly, the problem to be solved by the present invention is that a car wash with a camera device that can capture a clear image using an inexpensive imaging means and can reliably recognize the position of a license plate of an automobile with this imaging means. Is to provide a machine.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a car wash machine for performing a car wash process by causing a car wash treatment device to act on a car body surface of a car in association with a relative movement between the car wash machine body and the car. An image pickup means for picking up an image, an optical filter arranged on the image pickup side of the image pickup means, an illumination device for illuminating an image pickup area of the image pickup means, and an image processing for extracting an automobile license plate from an image picked up by the image pickup means And a car wash processing means for controlling the car wash processing device with respect to the license plate recognized by the processing means, wherein the imaging means is irradiated with an infrared sensitive image sensor, and the illumination device is irradiated with infrared light. A light source, the optical filter is a visible light cut filter, and the imaging means is tilted to the front upper part of the car wash machine main body and from the right downward direction to the front of the car wash machine. Those mounted in the state.

  According to the present invention, a visible light cut filter that cuts the visible light wavelength region is disposed on the imaging side of the image sensor, and focusing on the near-infrared wavelength region corresponding to the sensitivity characteristic of the image sensor allows defocusing. A clear image can be obtained. In addition, since the imaging area is illuminated with infrared light, and the near-infrared wavelength is imaged with an infrared camera through a visible light cut filter, the effects of sunlight in the daytime and outdoor lights (mercury lamps) in the nighttime can be eliminated. An image of the front surface of the vehicle body can be taken regardless of external factors such as weather. Furthermore, if the headlight has a small spectral characteristic in the near-infrared wavelength region, such as an HID lamp (high-intensity discharge lamp), an image of the front surface of the vehicle body can be taken even when the light is turned on. And since the image pickup means is fixed to the upper rear of the car wash machine body in a state where it is tilted from the downward direction to the front of the car wash machine by a predetermined angle, the front surface of the vehicle body including the license plate can be imaged. The actual distance from the license plate is calculated, and the license plate is not damaged by the car wash processor.

  Hereinafter, the car wash machine shown in the first embodiment.

  Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a side view showing the configuration of the first embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a plan view of the same. In this example, the car wash machine travels across a car and the car-type car wash machine performs washing and drying. Is shown.

  The car wash machine main body 1 reciprocates on the pair of left and right rails 2 and 2 and moves so as to straddle the automobile stopped between the rails 2 and 2. Reference numerals 3, 4, and 4 are rotating brushes as a car wash processing device provided in the car wash machine body 1, 3 is an upper surface brush that moves up and down along the body surface and mainly cleans the upper surface of the vehicle body, and 4 and 4 are along the body surface. A pair of left and right side brushes that open and close and clean the side and front and rear surfaces of the vehicle body. Blower nozzles 5, 6, and 6 are provided in the car wash machine body 1 and serve as a car wash processing device for drying the vehicle body after washing. It is a pair of left and right side blower nozzles that move up and down.

  7A and 7B are camera devices for imaging a car entering a car wash area and a car being washed. 7A is a first camera that is provided at the center in the width direction above the rear part of the main body 1 and mainly images an oblique front from the mounting position. The device 7B is a second camera device which is provided at the center in the width direction in the decorative plate above the front surface of the main body 1 and mainly captures the direction immediately below from the mounting position. Reference numeral 8 denotes a vehicle shape detection device that is provided in front of the main body 1 and reads a shape (silhouette) from the side of the automobile as the main body 1 travels, and 9 is a pulse output every time the car wash machine main body 1 travels a unit distance. Encoders 10 and 10 are motors for driving the main body 1.

  Reference numerals 11 and 12 denote lighting devices that are lit at night when the surroundings are dark. Reference numerals 11 and 11 denote vehicle body lighting devices that are provided on the left and right sides of the decorative panel of the main body 1 to illuminate the upper surface of the automobile. This is a floor illumination device that is provided respectively on the left and right below the leg portion of the first camera device and illuminates the floor surface of the imaging range of the second camera device 7B. These illuminating devices are composed of infrared lamps that irradiate near-infrared wavelengths, and the amount of light of the floor surface illuminating device 12 is higher than that of the vehicle body illuminating device 11 so that the amount of light is uniform on images captured by the camera devices 7A and 7B. Has increased. Here, the best conditions could be obtained by setting the vehicle body illumination device 11 to 20 W and the floor illumination device 12 to 60 W.

3A and 3B are explanatory views showing the internal structure of the camera device. FIG. 3A shows the first camera device 7A, and FIG. 3B shows the second camera device 7B.
Each of the camera devices 7A and 7B includes a lens 13, a CCD 14 capable of imaging a near-infrared region, an optical filter 15 disposed in front of the lens 13, a circuit board 16 for driving the camera, and a front surface of the optical filter 15. It is comprised from the cover apparatus 17 which opens and closes. The camera device 7B has a built-in illuminance sensor 18 that detects ambient illuminance, and is used to control lighting / extinguishing of the lighting device.

  The optical filter 15 attached to the first camera device 7A is a visible light cut filter 15a that does not pass the visible light wavelength region. This visible light cut filter 15a is a band-pass filter that does not transmit visible light wavelengths and transmits a wavelength range of 850 nm to 950 nm, and cuts and restricts visible light components of sunlight, disturbance light, and outdoor lighting. It has a function to make it easy to focus by passing only the wavelength region through the CCD 14.

  The optical filter 15 attached to the second camera device 7B is a polarizing filter 15b that removes reflected light. The polarizing filter 15b removes the direct sunlight and the reflected light from the glass surface, and removes the reflected light from the rear mirror and the rear window mainly when detecting the rear mirror. The polarizing filter 15b is arranged at a right angle to the polarization plane of the reflected light to be removed, and is attached in accordance with the traveling direction of the car wash machine body 1 in order to remove the reflected light from the rear mirror and the rear window. Yes.

4A and 4B are explanatory diagrams for explaining the functions and operations of the camera devices 7A and 7B. FIG. 3A shows the functions and operations of the first camera device 7A, and FIG. 3B shows the functions and operations of the second camera device 7B. ing.
As shown in FIG. 3A, the first camera device 7 </ b> A is attached to a camera housing portion specially provided at the upper rear portion of the car wash machine body 1 in a state of being inclined forward and downward. Is in the standby position at the rear end of the rails 2 and 2, the upper surface brush 3 rising to the standby position is not captured, and a shooting range R1 is provided that allows the front of the vehicle at the stop position to be imaged regardless of the vehicle type, An image a1 in a state where there is no automobile and an image a2 in a state where the automobile is stopped at the stop position are captured. That is, in this camera device 7A, the state before the car wash is performed is imaged, and is not imaged during the car wash. The captured image a1 is used to calculate a correction value mainly by comparison with the basic image, and the image a2 is used to confirm the positions of the license plate, door mirror, custom mirror, and side pole.

  As shown in FIG. 3B, the second camera device 7 </ b> B is housed in an acrylic cosmetic mall mounted on the upper front surface of the car wash machine body 1, and images the front directly under the car wash machine body 1. A possible shooting range R2 is given, and an image is taken whenever the car wash machine body 1 travels a certain distance from the start of the car wash. Here, the image b1 with no automobile at the standby position is captured, and the image b2 when the rear mirror RM is detected by the vehicle shape detection device 8 during the car wash is captured. The image b1 is mainly based on It is used to calculate a correction value by comparison with an image, and the image b2 is used to extract a rear mirror.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating the control system of the first embodiment.
Reference numeral 20 denotes a car wash control board. Based on the information about the equipment, shape, position, etc. of the automobile obtained from the image processing board 21, the car shape detection board 22, and the position detection board 23, the brush 3. 4. Car wash processing devices such as blower nozzles 5, 6 and 6 are operated to perform car washing according to the equipment, shape, position, etc. of the car. Reference numeral 25 denotes an operation unit for selecting car wash contents and inputting start of car wash, and outputting guidance and operation procedures and the like by display and voice to the operating person.

  The image processing board 21 performs various detection operations by storing and processing automobile images captured by the camera devices 7A and 7B, and the ambient brightness detected by the illuminance sensor 18 of the second camera device 7B. Based on the above, the lighting devices 11 and 12 are switched on / off, the shutter speed of the camera device is switched, the opening and closing control of the cover device 17 of the camera device, and the blowout of the lighting devices 11 and 12 are detected. . The image processing board 21 includes an image storage unit 26, a license plate position recognition unit 27, and a rear mirror recognition unit 28.

  The image storage unit 26 stores image data picked up by the camera devices 7A and 7B, stores images picked up at the start of the car wash or during the car wash, a basic image serving as a reference for mounting the camera device, and the like. When the car wash is completed, the image data stored during the car wash is transferred to the external memory 29. The external memory 29 stores image data of a car that has been washed in the past for a certain period of time, and the stored data can be used for investigating the cause and confirming the fact when there is a failure or trouble. In other words, if some trouble occurs during the car wash and the car wash stops halfway, the camera device 7A, 7B takes an image of the state and stores it in the external memory 29 together with the data of the car shape detection device 8 and the like. In this way, it can be used to solve problems later. The external memory 29 is preferably a removable card type flash memory.

  The license plate position recognition unit 27 detects the number plate of the car based on the image data stored in the image storage unit 26, and is based on the image of the car parked at the stop position imaged by the first camera device 7A. The license plate portion on the front of the vehicle body is extracted, and the position (position in the width direction of the car) and the shape and configuration around the plate are detected. The recognition of the license plate is performed by extracting the edge of the automobile from the image of the automobile parked at the stop position and searching for a predetermined rectangular shape from the automobile image by a pattern matching method. The position of the license plate is calculated by calculating the two-dimensional coordinates of the four corners of the license plate on the identified image, and the X and Y components of the two-dimensional coordinates are used as the mounting height and the shooting depression angle of the first camera device 7A, The number plate is converted based on the ground height parameter, and the position in the vehicle body width direction and the shape / configuration around it are detected.

  The rear mirror recognition unit 28 recognizes a rear mirror installed in the rear part of the vehicle based on the image data stored in the image storage unit 26, and extracts a rear mirror part based on an image captured by the second camera device 7B. Detect the position in the width direction of the car. The detection of the rear mirror is executed when the vehicle shape detection device 8 recognizes that there is a rear mirror. Similarly to the license plate position recognition unit 27, the edge of the car is extracted and the shape of the rear mirror is determined from the car image. This is done by matching with a type image (a pattern image registered in advance) and detecting its position in the vehicle body width direction.

  The vehicle shape detection device 8 is provided in front of the car wash machine 1 so as to hold the automobile in the width direction, and receives a light emitting unit 8a in which a plurality of light emitting elements are arranged vertically and a light emitting element corresponding to each one. The light receiving unit 8b in which a plurality of elements are arranged is provided to face each other, and the vehicle shape is read by blocking the optical signal transmitted and received between the light emitting unit 8a and the light receiving unit 8b.

  The vehicle shape detection board 22 stores and processes the shape of the automobile detected by the vehicle shape detection device 8 and performs various detection operations. The detection drive unit 30, the vehicle shape storage unit 31, and the protrusion detection unit 32 are used. , A front end detection unit 33 and a rear end detection unit 34.

  The detection drive unit 30 scans the light emitting unit 8a and the light receiving unit 8b at a predetermined timing, and every time the car wash machine 1 moves a unit distance using a pulse signal from the encoder 9 accompanying the traveling of the car wash machine body 1 as a trigger. The optical signal is repeatedly transmitted and received between the light emitting unit and the light receiving unit. That is, a signal is output to the light emitting unit to cause the light emitting elements to emit light in order from the top, and in synchronization with this, the light receiving level of the light receiving element facing the light emitting element is obtained in order, and the vehicle body detection is performed, so that one light emission The light from the element is detected by a light receiving element that is horizontally opposed thereto, and the vehicle body is detected between the elements.

  The vehicle shape storage unit 31 receives a vehicle body detection signal from the light receiving unit in accordance with the detection drive of the detection drive unit 30 to detect the vehicle body surface position of the vehicle, and accumulates the vehicle body surface position for each unit distance travel of the main body 1. To form the shape (silhouette) of the side of the car. Based on the vehicle shape stored in the vehicle shape storage unit 31, the projection detection unit 32 recognizes the projection by detecting local undulations on the vehicle body surface, and determines the type of projection according to the position and shape of the projection. As a method for identifying the position and type from the recognition of the protrusion, for example, a method disclosed in JP-A-8-225065 can be used. The front end detection unit 33 detects the front end position of the vehicle based on the vehicle shape stored in the vehicle shape storage unit 31, and the rear end detection unit 34 determines the rear end of the vehicle based on the vehicle shape stored in the vehicle shape storage unit 31. The end position is detected.

  The position detection board 23 counts the pulse signal output by the encoder 9 as the car wash machine body 1 travels, detects the travel position of the car wash machine body 1, and uses a known non-contact switch such as a beam sensor. It detects that the automobile has stopped at a predetermined stop position, or detects the standby position, travel limit, etc. of the car wash machine main body 1 using a limit switch.

  As described above, the car wash control board 20 collects information on the car to be washed, such as the license plate, the projection, and the vehicle body shape, from the image processing board 21, the car shape detection board 22, and the position detection board 23. This enables safe and efficient car washing without causing an abnormal stop or damaging the license plate or protrusions.

Operation | movement is demonstrated about the car wash machine of Example 1 comprised in this way.
When the automobile is stopped at the stop position shown in FIG. 3A (1), the first camera device 7A takes an image, and the license plate position recognition unit 27 detects the position of the license plate based on this image. (2).

  When it is confirmed that the car is stopped at an appropriate stop position and can be washed on the car wash machine main body 1 side, a car wash sequence is executed (3). Here, when the operation unit 25 is on the front surface of the car wash machine main body 1, the driver can perform a car wash by performing a necessary operation input (start key input or the like) through the operation unit 25. Further, when the operation unit is located away from the main body 1 in front of the car wash area in the drive-through type, the operation input is completed when entering the car wash area, so the car wash is automatically executed after a predetermined time. .

  The car wash sequence differs depending on the car wash course selected by the operation unit 25, and is a vehicle shape detection process in which the car shape detection device 8 detects the vehicle shape by running the car wash machine main body 1 and the vehicle shape detection process. A brush process that brushes the body surface by controlling the brushes 3, 4, and 4 according to the read body shape and a drying process that controls the blower nozzles 5, 6 and 6 according to the body shape and blows air onto the vehicle body are combined appropriately. To be executed. The car shape detection process may be performed simultaneously with the brush process, or may be performed in a process in which the car wash machine main body 1 goes first. However, when the vehicle shape detection process and the brush process are performed simultaneously, water droplets are expected to be scattered from the cleaning brush. Therefore, the first camera device 7A is in a state in which the cover device is closed, and the second camera device is used for image capturing. 7B only.

  In the vehicle shape detection step, the vehicle shape is read by the vehicle shape detection device 8 every time the car wash machine 1 moves a unit distance using a pulse signal from the encoder 9 accompanying the traveling of the car wash machine body 1 as a trigger. An image is captured by the second camera device 7B in synchronization with the reading of. In the vehicle shape detection device 8, the silhouette of the car to be washed is formed in the vehicle shape storage unit 31, and the position and type of the protrusion of the vehicle body is detected by the protrusion detection unit 32 from the formed vehicle shape data, and the front end detection unit 33 The front end position of the vehicle body and the rear end position of the vehicle body are detected by the rear end detection unit 34, respectively.

  In the brushing process, when brushing the front of the car with the side brushes 4 and 4, depending on the position of the license plate detected by the license plate position recognition unit 27 and the shape and configuration of the surroundings, the license plate should not be bent. Preventive measures are taken by a known method such as reducing the contact pressure of the brushes 4 and 4 or adjusting the rotation direction and the number of rotations of the brushes 4 and 4. When it is determined that the risk of bending is low from the shape and configuration around the license plate detected by the license plate position recognition unit 27, the front of the vehicle body is brushed without taking any preventive measures. If the license plate cannot be recognized by the license plate position recognition unit 27 and its position and surrounding shape cannot be specified, a preventive measure is taken on the entire front surface of the vehicle body as in the conventional case.

  In the brush process or the drying process, when the brush or blower nozzle reaches the position of the protrusion detected by the protrusion detection unit 34, the protrusion may be damaged depending on the position or type of the protrusion given by the detection unit 34. Operate to avoid it. When the side brushes 4 and 4 and the side blower nozzles 6 and 6 are operated avoiding, for example, if the rear mirror recognition unit 28 can confirm the position of the rear mirror in the width direction of the vehicle, only the brush and blower nozzle on the side that may come into contact with the rear mirror are used. To work around. When the rear mirror recognition unit 28 cannot confirm the position of the rear mirror in the width direction of the vehicle, the brushes 4 and 4 and the blower nozzles 6 and 6 are evacuated symmetrically as in the conventional case.

  When the car wash sequence is completed, the vehicle shape and projection data detected by the vehicle shape detection device 8, the image data used on the image processing board 21, the position data of the license plate and the projection, etc. are transferred to the external memory 29 ( 4) Retan. The data stored in the external memory can be used as verification data when an abnormality occurs, when an accident occurs, or when a complaint occurs.

Next, an imaging method around the license plate will be described.
As described above, the license plate is imaged when the automobile to be cleaned is stopped at a predetermined stop position. An image of the front surface of the automobile including the license plate is taken by the first camera device 7A when the car wash machine body 1 is in the standby position.

FIG. 7 shows an example of an image of the front side of an automobile, where (a) shows an image when a visible light cut filter is not used, and (b) shows a front light of the automobile with a halogen lamp mounted on the headlight. (C) shows an image when a front surface of an automobile having a headlight mounted with an HID lamp is imaged using a visible light cut filter.
As shown in this figure, a CCD 14 having a sensitivity capable of imaging near-infrared wavelengths and a visible light cut filter 15 that excludes visible light wavelengths in a photographing area illuminated by a lighting device 11 that emits light of near-infrared wavelengths. When the image is captured by the first camera device 7A including the above, the light component incident on the CCD 14 is limited to a wavelength region (850 to 950 nm) corresponding to the bandpass characteristic of the visible light cut filter 15, and the chromatic aberration of the lens and the CCD The defocusing due to the charge diffusion is reduced, and a clear image can be obtained. Also, in night shooting, even if the image is taken with the headlight turned on, whiteout due to excessive light intensity is less likely to occur, and light sources such as HID lamps and mercury lamps that have low spectral characteristics in the near-infrared wavelength region are used. If so, it is possible to obtain an image that is hardly affected by the influence.

  The present invention can be implemented as described above, and various embodiments are conceivable without departing from the scope of the claims. In the embodiment, an example was shown for a gate type car wash machine, but it can also be applied to a stationary type car wash machine in which a car is moved by a conveyor or the like. After the car is imaged in the same manner, a necessary body part may be imaged in accordance with the movement of the car. In the embodiment, a plurality of cameras with different shooting ranges are provided. However, if an actuator or the like is provided so that a single camera can change the shooting range to capture an image, a smaller number of cameras can be used instead. On the other hand, if the number of cameras is increased so that images from both sides of the car can be taken from the upper part of the car washer, it is possible to more accurately detect the side mirror and the door mirror protruding from the side profile of the car. it can.

  It can be used in a door-type car wash machine that is installed outdoors and has a camera device that images a car to be cleaned.

1 is a side view showing a configuration of Example 1. FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a configuration of Example 1. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of a camera device according to a first embodiment. It is a side view explaining the function and operation | movement of the camera apparatus in Example 1. FIG. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a control system according to the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation of the first embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which shows the image of the motor vehicle front taken in in Example 1. FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Carwash machine main body 3.4.4 Brush as car wash processing device 5.6.6 Blower nozzle as car wash processing device 7A, 7B Camera device 8 Car shape detection device 15a Visible light cut filter 20 Car wash control board 21 Image processing board

Claims (1)

In a car wash machine that performs a car wash process by causing a car wash treatment device to act on the car body surface of the car along with the relative movement between the car wash machine body and the car,
From an image picked up by the image pickup means, an image pickup means for picking up the front surface including the license plate of the car to be cleaned, an optical filter arranged on the image pickup side of the image pickup means, an illumination device for illuminating an image pickup area of the image pickup means, An image processing means for extracting a license plate of an automobile; and a car wash processing means for controlling the car wash processing apparatus for the license plate recognized by the processing means, the imaging means having an infrared sensitivity, The illumination device is a light source for irradiating infrared light, the optical filter is a visible light cut filter, and the imaging means is mounted on the upper rear side of the car wash machine body in a state inclined at a predetermined angle from the lower direction to the front of the car wash machine. Car wash machine characterized by.

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