JP2007101421A - Sensor unit and sensor system for monitoring surrounding - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sensor unit for monitoring surrounding, which senses the surrounding conditions of a car and can appropriately support safe driving, accompanying the variations in the surrounding conditions. <P>SOLUTION: The sensor unit for monitoring the surrounding comprises an image sensor for photographing the surrounding monitored image of the car; an object-detecting sensor for detecting an object to be photographed; an image output means for outputting image information which is photographed by the image sensor, to a communication line side; and a state-switching means which switches operation states of the image sensor and/or the image output means, in order to output information of a more crisp image photographed by the corresponding image sensor, when the object detecting sensor detects the object. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a perimeter monitoring sensor unit and a perimeter monitoring sensor system, and more particularly to a perimeter monitoring sensor unit that can assist a driver by more accurately monitoring the periphery of a vehicle and switching the operation state.

  Conventionally, automobiles have been provided with a large number of electrical equipment, and each electrical equipment is connected using a communication line. Among these electrical devices, there is a camera unit that outputs image information of an area that becomes a blind spot of the driver by imaging the peripheral state of the automobile. That is, safe driving assistance is performed by displaying an image obtained from a camera unit that captures a blind spot of a car on a display unit in the car. The image captured by the camera unit uses an image sensor that captures a visible light image as a physical quantity. However, in recent years, an image sensor that measures a two-dimensional distribution of the reflected millimeter wave emitted from the camera unit is used. There is also. Alternatively, an image sensor that measures a two-dimensional distribution of infrared rays or ultrasonic waves is also conceivable.

  Since the image captured by the camera unit is communicated via a communication line and input to the image processing ECU for display on the display unit, the communication line processes image information obtained from a plurality of camera units. It is necessary to obtain a sufficient communication speed to transmit to the means.

  By the way, in recent years, the technology related to automobile electrical equipment has been remarkably advanced, and the camera unit measures various physical quantities with higher accuracy and supplies more detailed information to the processing means. For example, in the case of an image sensor that measures the two-dimensional distribution of visible light, in recent years, the number of pixels has become more detailed, such as 640 × 480 dots, 800 × 480 dots, 1024 × 768 dots, etc., and the gradation is also detected as 24-bit full color. An image sensor capable of outputting 30 frames to 60 frames per second may be used.

  Image sensor performance has also improved in image sensors that obtain two-dimensional images by measuring physical quantities such as millimeter waves and infrared light, so that more detailed images for monitoring the surroundings of automobiles can be obtained. As a result, safe driving support can be performed more fully. However, there is a problem that the more information that can be captured by the image sensor, the larger the information amount of image information output via the communication line.

  On the other hand, as shown in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-194457 (Patent Document 1), peripheral monitoring may be performed by stopping sensors other than necessary and narrowing down the sensors to be operated.

JP 2001-194457 A

  However, in the case of a camera unit attached to an automobile, the surrounding situation constantly changes, and therefore there is a problem that if the camera unit other than the traveling direction is stopped, the surrounding situation that occurs outside the traveling direction cannot be dealt with. Therefore, in order to give an instruction to switch the operation state of the camera unit according to the situation of the automobile that changes from moment to moment, it is conceivable to connect each camera unit in a controllable manner using a dedicated signal line or multiple signal lines. Alternatively, power line superimposition multiplex communication has been implemented as one of communication methods. However, in this case, problems such as the need for a dedicated communication line and the need to form a complicated circuit for transmitting multiple signals also arise.

  The present invention has been made in consideration of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to detect a surrounding situation of a vehicle and to perform appropriate safe driving support in accordance with a change in the surrounding situation. Is to provide.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides:
An image sensor that captures an image of the vehicle surroundings;
An object detection sensor for detecting an object to be imaged;
Image output means for outputting image information captured by the image sensor to the communication line side;
State switching means for outputting clearer image information captured by the corresponding image sensor by switching the operation state of the image sensor and / or image output means when the object detection sensor detects the object. A perimeter monitoring sensor unit is provided.

  According to the above-described configuration, the presence / absence of an object located in the vicinity of the vehicle can be detected using the object detection sensor, and the state switching unit detects the object by the object detection sensor and / or Alternatively, since the operation state of the image output means is switched, autonomous state switching in the periphery monitoring sensor unit can be performed. In other words, when detailed image information that makes the most of the capabilities of the image sensor is not always output to the communication line, the operation state is switched autonomously as the surrounding situation changes, and there is an object in the vicinity In this case, detailed image information can be output, and if there is no object, appropriately simplified image information can be output.

  Therefore, by detecting the presence or absence of an object using an object detection sensor, it is possible to output image information with sufficiently detailed accuracy to perform safety confirmation when necessary, thereby providing appropriate safe driving support It can be performed. The object detection sensor determines the presence or absence of an object by measuring physical quantities such as electromagnetic waves, infrared rays, visible light, and ultrasonic waves. In recent automobiles, the traveling direction is 24 GHz, 60 GHz, 77 GHz. Since a radar that irradiates an electromagnetic wave having a frequency (hereinafter referred to as a millimeter wave) is provided, the presence or absence of an object can be detected simply by receiving the millimeter wave.

  In addition, the measured values of various physical quantities that arrive from the side face are used as judgment materials for predicting a collision when an automobile encounters, and the measured values of various physical quantities that are reached from behind serve as a judgment material for performing rear-end collision prediction. The object detection by the object detection sensor may detect not only the presence / absence of the object but also whether the object is approaching using intensity change of the physical quantity to be measured, Doppler shift, etc. preferable. Furthermore, the operation state may be switched so as to adjust the data amount of image information to be output depending on whether or not the object is approaching.

  It is conceivable that the state switching unit switches the data amount of the image information output from the image sensor and / or the image information output from the image output unit. The increase / decrease of the data amount may be performed depending on the resolution, the number of colors, the number of frames, the presence / absence of compression, etc., but the data amount can be dramatically increased / decreased only by increasing / decreasing the resolution and the number of colors. . The state switching means switches not only the increase / decrease in the amount of data to be output, but also switching between image information obtained by enlarging an area where the object exists in all areas that can be imaged and image information indicating the whole. Also good. The switching of the image information is to adjust the viewing angle control unit on the image sensor side, or to perform thinning (so-called digital zoom) of the image captured in the image sensor or the image information output means. Also good.

The present invention also provides:
An image sensor that captures an image of the vehicle surroundings;
An object detection sensor for detecting an object to be imaged;
Image output means for outputting image information captured by the image sensor to the communication line side;
There is provided a periphery monitoring sensor unit comprising: object notification means for outputting the detection information to the communication line side when the object detection sensor detects the object.

  According to the above configuration, the presence / absence of an object located in the vicinity of the vehicle can be detected by using the object detection sensor, and the state switching unit uses this detection information when detecting the object by the object detection sensor. Output to the communication line side. That is, it can be determined whether or not there is an object to be imaged only by the output of the periphery monitoring sensor unit including the image sensor and the object detection sensor formed in one unit. When the target exists, the specific status of the target can be confirmed by displaying image information.

  The object detection sensor determines the presence or absence of an object by measuring physical quantities such as electromagnetic waves, infrared rays, visible light, and ultrasonic waves. In particular, if the object detection sensor receives millimeter waves irradiated in the traveling direction of the automobile, the presence or absence of the object can be detected very easily. In addition, the measured values of various physical quantities that arrive from the side face are used as judgment materials for predicting a collision by encountering an automobile, and the measured values of seed physical quantities that are reached from the rear are used as judgment materials for performing rear-end collision prediction. The object detection by the object detection sensor detects not only the presence / absence of the object, but also whether the object is approaching using a change in the intensity (level) of a physical quantity to be measured or a Doppler shift. Preferably there is.

An antenna from which the object detection sensor receives incoming electromagnetic waves from a surrounding vehicle;
A filter circuit that is connected to the antenna and that receives an incoming electromagnetic wave in a specific frequency band; and
It is preferable that the detection circuit is connected to the filter circuit to obtain a detection signal of the object using the reception intensity in a predetermined frequency band.

  The antenna receives a millimeter wave emitted from a radar mounted on a car in recent years as an incoming electromagnetic wave, selects and receives the incoming electromagnetic wave by a filter circuit of a specific frequency band, and the detection means uses the received intensity. An object detection signal can be obtained. More specifically, the detection means includes a preamplifier that amplifies the signal of the incoming electromagnetic wave that has passed through the filter circuit, a diode that converts the signal into a direct current and converts the amplitude into a voltage, and the magnitude of the voltage is an intensity level. It is conceivable to provide a comparator for obtaining a detection signal in comparison with the threshold value. In any case, since the object detection sensor is a very simple circuit, its operation is stable.

The antenna has directivity, is formed so as to be capable of scanning in a range that matches the viewing angle of the image sensor, and
It is preferable that the detection means is configured to detect the direction of the incoming electromagnetic wave from the relationship between the scanning angle of the antenna and the received intensity and to detect the direction of the surrounding automobile.

  That is, by scanning the antenna and detecting the direction of the incoming electromagnetic wave, the direction in which the surrounding automobile is present can be known. Here, it is preferable that the image sensor or the image output unit appropriately processes and outputs image information from the image sensor in accordance with the direction in which the surrounding automobile is present. That is, when the object detection sensor detects a vehicle, the image sensor or the output sensor outputs detailed image information of an imaging region where a surrounding vehicle is present among all the imaging regions that can be imaged by the image sensor. A configuration that controls the operation state of the image output means to be switched, and the detailed image information is output to the communication line by narrowing the viewing angle of the image sensor with the direction of the image sensor facing the direction in which the surrounding car is present A configuration in which the image sensor is controlled to be switched can be considered.

The antenna has directivity, and the receiving intensity varies depending on the direction of the incoming electromagnetic wave by being arranged at a plurality of different angles in a range that matches the viewing angle of the image sensor.
It is preferable that the detection means is configured to be able to detect the direction of the incoming electromagnetic wave using the difference in reception intensity at the plurality of antennas and to detect this as the direction of presence of the automobile.

  That is, by detecting the direction of incoming electromagnetic waves using a plurality of antennas, the direction in which the surrounding automobile is present can be known. In addition, control is performed so as to switch the operation state of the image sensor or the image output means so that detailed image information of the imaging region where the surrounding automobile is present is output to the communication line among all the imaging regions that can be imaged by the image sensor. Configuration and configuration for controlling the image sensor to be switched so that the detailed image information is output to the communication line by narrowing the viewing angle of the image sensor in a state where the direction of the image sensor is in the direction in which the surrounding automobile is present Can be considered.

The present invention also provides:
An image sensor that captures an image of the periphery of an automobile and an object detection sensor that detects an object to be imaged, and a clearer periphery monitor captured by the image sensor when the object detection sensor detects the object A plurality of perimeter monitoring sensor units that are provided in each part of the car, with a function of outputting image information,
A communication line connected to each perimeter monitoring sensor unit;
Monitoring information totaling means for totaling image information received by being connected to each peripheral monitoring sensor unit via this communication line;
There is provided a periphery monitoring sensor system characterized by comprising display means for displaying image information aggregated by the monitoring information aggregation means.

  According to the periphery monitoring sensor system having the above-described configuration, the image information received from the plurality of periphery monitoring sensor units can be collectively displayed by the monitoring information totaling unit and displayed on the display unit as a periphery monitoring image in each part of the automobile. Also, when an object to be imaged is detected in the vicinity of the vehicle, the periphery monitoring sensor unit arranged in that direction autonomously switches its operation state and outputs more detailed image information to the communication line. Since the information counting means can obtain detailed image information on the side where the object is present, by displaying this on the display means, a clearer image of the object can be displayed.

The present invention also provides:
An image sensor that captures an image of the surroundings of an automobile, an object detection sensor that detects an object to be imaged, and an object notification unit that outputs this detection information when the object detection sensor detects an object; A plurality of perimeter monitoring sensor units arranged in each part of the automobile;
A communication line connected to each perimeter monitoring sensor unit;
The image information received by being connected to each peripheral monitoring sensor unit via this communication line is totaled, and at least warning information indicating the direction of the object is detected using detection information obtained from the peripheral monitoring sensor unit of each part. Monitoring information aggregation means to be generated;
There is provided a periphery monitoring sensor system characterized by comprising display means for displaying image information and warning information aggregated by the image aggregation means.

  According to the periphery monitoring sensor system having the above-described configuration, the image information received from the plurality of periphery monitoring sensor units can be collectively displayed by the monitoring information totaling unit and displayed on the display unit as a periphery monitoring image in each part of the automobile. In addition, when detecting an object to be imaged around the automobile, the surrounding monitoring sensor unit arranged in that direction outputs detection information to the communication line, so the monitoring information counting means determines the direction in which the object is present to the driver. Warning information for notifying the user can be generated and displayed on the display means.

  The warning information generated by the monitoring information aggregation means may be notified to the driver as an alarm message or a warning message by voice, but by displaying the warning on the display means, the driver can make an accurate situation determination. it can. When the monitoring information totaling means is configured to thin out the image information obtained from the periphery monitoring sensor unit, the image information on the side where the object exists is based on the detection information output by the periphery monitoring sensor unit. Is preferably clearly displayed by the display means.

  Further, the monitoring information counting means may generate warning information for performing control such as tightening of the seat belt and optimum movement of the seat, using the detection information. In this case, it is also possible to perform collision prediction control called so-called pre-crash safety.

  The periphery monitoring sensor unit preferably has a function of outputting clearer periphery monitoring image information of the object imaged by the image sensor when the object detection sensor detects the object. The peripheral monitoring image information output from the peripheral monitoring sensor unit outputs clearer peripheral monitoring image information of the target only when the target detection sensor detects the target, so the communication load factor of the communication line is unnecessary. Therefore, it is possible to output a clear image using the performance of the image sensor when necessary.

  As described above, according to the present invention, safe driving support for a driver can be performed by more accurately monitoring the periphery of the vehicle and switching the operation state. When the driver drives the car, simply monitoring the surroundings will cause blind spots, and if the speed of the car increases, the driver's field of view will be narrowed. In some cases, according to the periphery monitoring sensor unit of the present invention, image information around the automobile can be output to the communication line side, and safe driving assistance can be performed using this image information.

  Since the peripheral monitoring sensor system has a display means for displaying a peripheral image, the image displayed on the display means is used to check a safe state in the vicinity that is difficult to monitor, such as a blind spot with the naked eye. Can do.

  In particular, when the object detection sensor detects the object, it is necessary when the periphery monitoring sensor unit is required to switch the state so that the periphery monitoring sensor system autonomously outputs clearer image information. Therefore, the communication load factor of the communication line can be reduced as compared with the case where a large amount of image information is always output. On the other hand, when the object detection sensor detects the object, if this detection information is output to the communication line side, this notification information can be used to output an appropriate warning to the driver, The display method on the means can be changed. In this case, since both the image information and the notification information are transmitted using a single communication line, there is an advantage that the wiring can be simplified and the manufacturing cost can be reduced accordingly.

  If the object detection sensor detects incoming electromagnetic waves from radars mounted on automobiles in recent years, it can detect the automobiles reliably, and it is not necessary to irradiate the surroundings with electromagnetic waves. it can. In addition, when the vehicle detection means detects not only the presence / absence of a vehicle but also the direction of presence, the surroundings can be monitored more accurately by determining the range to be imaged according to the direction of presence of the vehicle. The vehicle can be easily confirmed using the captured image.

  1 and 2 show a configuration of a periphery monitoring sensor system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the perimeter monitoring sensor system 1 is provided with perimeter monitoring sensor units 3 a to 3 d on the front, rear, left and right sides of the automobile 2, and these perimeter monitoring sensor units 3 a to 3 d are connected to the LAN communication line 4 to monitor information aggregation means ECU: a control unit composed of an electronic control unit, which is hereinafter referred to as a peripheral monitoring ECU) 5. Reference numeral 6 denotes display means connected to the periphery monitoring ECU 5 via a bus 7 of an upper information network such as an in-vehicle LAN. In the following description, the peripheral monitoring sensor units 3a to 3d are referred to as peripheral monitoring sensor units 3 when it is not necessary to distinguish them.

  The periphery monitoring sensor units 3a to 3d shown in the present embodiment are attached to the back of the front grille, the rear bumper, the upper part of the B pillar on the side surface, and the like, and respectively image the front, rear, left side, and right side. An object detection sensor for detecting an object to be imaged is incorporated. In order to capture the rear, it is conceivable to install the periphery monitoring sensor unit 3e or the like in the left and right side mirrors, or to attach the periphery monitoring sensor unit 3f that captures the oblique left and right front in the front bumper. Then, it is omitted for the sake of simplicity.

  Furthermore, the periphery monitoring sensor units 3c and 3d attached to the left and right may be provided with a vehicle speed interlocking tilt mechanism that can tilt in the horizontal direction so as to change the imaging range in accordance with the vehicle speed. That is, when the vehicle is traveling at low speed, the imaging range of the peripheral monitoring sensor units 3c and 3d is directed diagonally forward so that a vehicle approaching from the left and right in the traveling direction can be imaged. It is preferable that the vehicle approaching from the left and right rear can be monitored. However, in the following description, in order to simplify the description, the imaging ranges of the left and right periphery monitoring sensor units 3c and 3d are described as fixed.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the periphery monitoring sensor unit 3 includes an image sensor 10 that captures a vehicle periphery monitoring image, an object detection sensor 11 that detects an object to be imaged, and an image captured by the image sensor 10. Image output means 12 for outputting the information Dv to the communication line 4 side, transmission means 13 for converting various information such as image information Dv obtained from the image output means 12 into an electrical signal and transmitting it via the communication line 4; When the object detection sensor 11 detects the object, the state switching means 14 for switching the operation state of the image sensor 10 and the image output means 12 and this detection when the object detection sensor 11 detects the object. And object notification means 15 for outputting information Df to the communication line 4 side.

  The image sensor 10 has a sensor element 10a that captures the received light intensity of visible light or infrared light as an image as a physical quantity as an image (two-dimensional distribution), and forms an image of the light on the sensor element 10a and changes its viewing angle. The optical lens 10b configured as described above and an image sensor control unit 10c that performs control to adjust the angle and the viewing angle of the sensor element 10a and the optical lens 10b are provided. The image sensor 10 is not limited to the one that measures the two-dimensional distribution of the light reception intensity of light, but picks up an image by capturing the shape of the object to be picked up two-dimensionally using physical quantities such as electromagnetic waves and ultrasonic waves. You may do. When the image sensor 10 captures an image using a physical quantity that is not visible light, the image sensor 10 captures an image that the driver cannot confirm with the naked eye, so that safe driving support can be effectively performed.

  The image sensor 10 preferably has several operation modes that adjust, for example, the resolution of the captured image, the number of frames to be captured, the viewing angle of the optical lens 10b, and the like, and further, the sensor element 10a and the optical lens 10b. It is preferable that the angle can also be adjusted. The image sensor 10 shown in the present embodiment has a maximum number of pixels of 1024 × 768 dots, and has the ability to capture and output 60-bit full-color images of 24 bits per second. The higher the capability of the image sensor 10 is, the better, but it goes without saying that it can be selected as appropriate in relation to the manufacturing cost.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the object detection sensor 11 includes an antenna 20 that receives, as an incoming electromagnetic wave, a millimeter wave that irradiates the surrounding vehicle, which is an imaging object, forwardly for peripheral monitoring and cruise control operations, A band-pass filter circuit 21 for passing an incoming electromagnetic wave in a specific frequency band (in the case of millimeter waves, for example, 24 GHz band, 60 GHz band, 77 GHz band) connected to the antenna 20 and the band-pass filter circuit 21 The detection means 22 is connected to obtain a detection signal of the object using the reception intensity in a predetermined frequency band.

  It is also conceivable to increase the detection sensitivity using a resonance circuit instead of the bandpass filter. Further, since the millimeter wave in the 24 GHz band is used only in the short-range radar in Japan, the peripheral monitoring sensor unit 3 including the band pass filter circuit 21 in the 24 GHz band is attached to the side surface of the automobile 2 so that the side Used for imaging.

  The antenna 20 includes a plurality of antenna elements 20a arranged in a plane and a drive circuit 20b thereof, and the phase of the millimeter wave received by each antenna element 20a increases as the number of the antenna elements 20a increases. Since the aligned angles are limited, the directivity of the antenna 20 can be increased.

  The detection means 22 includes, for example, a preamplifier 23 that amplifies the incoming electromagnetic wave that has passed through the filter circuit 21, a diode 24 that obtains the amplitude of the incoming electromagnetic wave as a voltage value by rectifying the signal amplified by the preamplifier 23, an amplifier 25 and a level determination unit 26 that measures the level of the incoming electromagnetic wave by comparing the incoming electromagnetic wave with a predetermined threshold from the voltage value.

  4 and 5 are a front view and a plan view of the periphery monitoring sensor unit 3, and show that the image sensor 10 and the object detection sensor 11 are built in one periphery monitoring sensor unit 3. The antenna 20 includes, for example, a plurality of antennas 20A to 20E that are arranged at slightly different angles in the lateral direction. Each of the antennas 20A, 20B... Has a viewing angle θa to θe of about 7 to 8 °, and the viewing angles θa, θb... Of adjacent antennas 20A, 20B. Thereby, it has comprised so that the transmission source (existing direction of the motor vehicle 2) of a different incoming electromagnetic wave can be divided into nine areas a1-a9, and can be specified.

  In order to obtain information indicating the direction in which the automobile 2 is present, the antenna angle is formed so that it can be scanned in a range that matches the viewing angle, and the angle at which the reception strength is strongest is output as the position where the automobile 2 is present. May be. In this case, a drive system that enables scanning of the antenna is necessary, but since the number of antennas may be single, the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

  Referring back to FIG. 2, the image output means 12 performs arithmetic processing for converting the image captured by the sensor element 10a into image information Dv and outputting it. The image output means 12 is an image sensor. The image picked up by 10 is thinned out somewhat, a part of the imageable range is enlarged, so-called digital zoom processing is performed, and image compression is performed. The image output means 12 is configured to be able to set several operation states such as the resolution of the image information Dv, the number of colors, the number of frames, the presence / absence of digital zoom, the center position of zoom, and the presence / absence of image compression as operation modes. . Thus, the data amount of the image information Dv can be adjusted as appropriate.

  The transmission means 13 is connected to a communication line 4 corresponding to a high-speed communication standard such as IEEE1394 (registered trademark, the same applies hereinafter) or MOST (registered trademark, the same applies hereinafter), and monitors the state of the communication line 4 to output an image. The detection information Df obtained from the object notification means 15 as well as the image information Dv obtained from the means 12 is converted into an electric signal and transmitted.

  The state switching unit 14 switches the operation state of the image sensor 10 and the image output unit 12 when the object detection sensor 11 detects a surrounding automobile. Normally, a captured image output from the image sensor 10 is selected. By thinning out, the data amount of the image information Dv is reduced by reducing the resolution to 320 × 240 dots or 640 × 480 dots, reducing the frame rate or the number of colors, or compressing the captured image. Also, a control command is transmitted to the image sensor control unit 10c to set the optical lens 10b to a wide angle and to set the angle of the sensor element 10a to the middle. The resolution, frame rate, number of colors, etc. may be adjusted on the image sensor 10 side or on the image output means 12 side.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of each of the monitoring image information Dva to Dvd (image information Dv output from each of the surrounding monitoring sensor units 3a to 3d is indicated by symbols Dva to Dvd, respectively) captured in the normal operation state. is there. In other words, the image information Dva to Dvd is for transmitting a monochrome image obtained by capturing a widest viewing angle image at a low resolution such as 320 × 240 dots in each of the front, rear, left and right directions at 30 frames per second. This is an operation sufficient for the function. Since the image compression causes a delay of the captured image, it is preferable not to normally perform the image compression.

  On the other hand, when the object detection sensor 11 detects the automobile M (see FIG. 6), the image that can be picked up by the image sensor 10 is utilized to the maximum, for example, the number of pixels is 1024 × 768 dots, and 24 bits. The image output means 12 is switched so that high-resolution image information Dv is output at 60 frames per second. At the same time, the image sensor control unit 10c is controlled so that the direction of the sensor element 10a is tilted according to the direction of the incoming electromagnetic wave (each area a1 to a9 shown in FIG. 5), and the optical lens 10b is squeezed into the incoming electromagnetic wave. The car M of the generation source of is shown enlarged.

  FIG. 7 shows an example of an image obtained by enlarging and picking up the automobile M that is the object with only the image information Dvb obtained from the rear periphery monitoring sensor unit 3b being high resolution.

  Returning to FIG. 2 again, the object notification means 15 outputs detection information Df to the communication means 13 when the object detection sensor 11 detects an automobile. The detection information Df preferably includes information indicating the intensity of the incoming electromagnetic wave (that is, the distance from the vehicle M as the object) and the direction (the incoming electromagnetic wave areas a1 to a9, etc.). In the following description, reference symbols Dfa to Dfd are used when it is necessary to distinguish the detection information Df output from each of the surrounding monitoring sensor units 3a to 3d.

  Next, the configuration of the periphery monitoring ECU 5 connected to each of the periphery monitoring sensor units 3a to 3d will be described. The surrounding monitoring ECU 5 generates, for example, one image information Dvm by combining the receiving unit 30 that receives the information Dva to Dvd and Dfa to Dfd and the image information Dva to Dvd from each of the surrounding monitoring sensor units 3a to 3d. Or the control information Dc for controlling each part in the automobile by collecting the detection information Dfa to Dfd from the surrounding monitoring sensor units 3a to 3d, and the information Dvm and Dc collected by the MCU 31 to the bus 7. And a LAN control unit 32 for transmission.

  Here, in this embodiment, one communication line 4 is connected to each of the surrounding monitoring sensor units 3a to 3d, and the surrounding monitoring ECU 5 and the surrounding monitoring sensor units 3a to 3d are directly connected using the plurality of communication lines 4. Therefore, the image information Dva to Dvd from each of the periphery monitoring sensor units 3a, 3b... Can be directly received. However, the present invention is not limited to the peripheral monitoring sensor units 3 a to 3 d being star-connected to the peripheral monitoring ECU 5, and the peripheral monitoring sensor units 3 a to 3 d are connected to each other by the communication line 4. Thus, it may be configured so that new peripheral monitoring sensor units 3 connected in series can be easily added. In addition, the peripheral monitoring sensor units 3a... May be connected in a daisy chain, or may be connected in a bus shape, a ring shape, or a tree shape.

  The display means 6 includes a LAN control unit 40 that receives various types of information Dvm and Dc from the bus 7, a display unit 41 such as a liquid crystal panel that displays image information Dvm received via the LAN control unit 40, And a sound generation unit 42 such as a speaker for outputting a warning by voice according to the control information Dc.

  Since the periphery monitoring sensor units 3a to 3d according to the present embodiment autonomously switch their operation states, processing such as switching the data amount of the image information Dva to Dvd to be transmitted is performed on the periphery monitoring sensor units 3a to 3d side. . Therefore, the MCU 31 can process the image information Da, Db... From the plurality of surrounding monitoring sensor units 3a to 3d without using a high processing capability.

  However, the present invention is not limited to this point. For example, the state of the image information Dva to Dvd transmitted from each of the periphery monitoring sensor units 3a to 3d is made constant, and the detection information Dfa is detected in the MCU 31 on the periphery monitoring ECU 5 side. When .about.Dfd is received, when the sent image information Dva to Dvd is summed up, the data amount may be reduced by performing appropriate thinning.

  In any case, the periphery monitoring sensor units 3a to 3d autonomously detect the approach of the vehicle M, switch its operation state, switch the image information Dv to be transmitted, and output the detection information Df. The state changes of the sensor units 3a to 3d can be used as direct approach information. Specifically, by using the information Dv and Df from the periphery monitoring sensor units 3a to 3d, it is possible to know from which direction the vehicle is approaching and to perform safe driving support. Moreover, since the periphery monitoring sensor system 1 displays the aggregate image information Dvm of the image information Dva to Dvd from each of the periphery monitoring sensor units 3a to 3d on the display means 6, the detection object approaching from the periphery is accurately confirmed. be able to.

  Note that an ECU (not shown) other than the peripheral monitoring ECU 5 and the display means 6 connected to the bus 7 receives the above notification information Dfa to Dfd via the bus 7, thereby causing collision prediction control (so-called “pre-crash”). Additional control such as “control” may be performed to retighten the seat belt or optimally move the seat.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the periphery monitoring sensor system which concerns on the Example of this invention. It is a figure which shows the electrical structure of the said periphery monitoring sensor system whole. It is a figure which expands and shows a part of periphery monitoring sensor unit which comprises a periphery monitoring sensor system. It is a front view of a periphery monitoring sensor unit. It is a top view of the periphery monitoring sensor unit. It is a figure which shows an example of the imaged image. It is a figure which shows the example of the image displayed when a motor vehicle approaches from back.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Perimeter monitoring sensor system 2 Car 3 (3a, 3b ...) Perimeter monitoring sensor unit 4 Communication line 5 Monitoring information totaling means 6 Display means 10 Image sensor 11 Object detection sensor 12 Image output means 13 State switching means 14 Object notification means 20 (20A ...) Antenna 21 Filter circuit 22 Detection means

Claims (8)

An image sensor that captures an image of the vehicle surroundings;
An object detection sensor for detecting an object to be imaged;
Image output means for outputting image information captured by the image sensor to the communication line side;
State switching means for outputting clearer image information captured by the corresponding image sensor by switching the operation state of the image sensor and / or image output means when the object detection sensor detects the object. Perimeter monitoring sensor unit characterized by comprising An image sensor that captures an image of the vehicle surroundings;
An object detection sensor for detecting an object to be imaged;
Image output means for outputting image information captured by the image sensor to the communication line side;
A periphery monitoring sensor unit comprising: object notification means for outputting the detection information to the communication line side when the object detection sensor detects the object. An antenna from which the object detection sensor receives incoming electromagnetic waves from a surrounding vehicle;
A filter circuit that is connected to the antenna and that receives an incoming electromagnetic wave in a specific frequency band; and
The perimeter monitoring sensor unit according to claim 1, further comprising a detection unit that is connected to the filter circuit and obtains a detection signal of an object using a reception intensity in a predetermined frequency band. The antenna has directivity, is formed so as to be capable of scanning in a range that matches the viewing angle of the image sensor, and
The periphery monitoring sensor unit according to claim 3, wherein the detection unit is configured to detect the direction of the incoming electromagnetic wave from the relationship between the scanning angle of the antenna and the reception intensity, and to detect the presence direction of the surrounding automobile. The antenna has directivity, and the receiving intensity varies depending on the direction of the incoming electromagnetic wave by being arranged at a plurality of different angles in a range that matches the viewing angle of the image sensor.
The perimeter monitoring sensor unit according to claim 3, wherein the detection unit is configured to be able to detect the direction of an incoming electromagnetic wave using a difference in reception intensity at a plurality of antennas and to detect the direction as an automobile presence direction. An image sensor that captures an image of the periphery of an automobile and an object detection sensor that detects an object to be imaged, and a clearer periphery monitor captured by the image sensor when the object detection sensor detects the object A plurality of perimeter monitoring sensor units having a function of outputting an image and arranged in each part of the automobile;
A communication line connected to each perimeter monitoring sensor unit;
Monitoring information totaling means for totaling image information received by being connected to each peripheral monitoring sensor unit via this communication line;
A periphery monitoring sensor system comprising: display means for displaying image information aggregated by the monitoring information aggregation means. An image sensor that captures an image of a vehicle surroundings monitor, an object detection sensor that detects an object to be imaged, and an object notification means that outputs this detection information when the object detection sensor detects an object, A plurality of perimeter monitoring sensor units arranged in each part of the automobile;
A communication line connected to each perimeter monitoring sensor unit;
The image information received by being connected to each peripheral monitoring sensor unit via this communication line is aggregated, and at least warning information indicating the direction of the object is detected using detection information obtained from the peripheral monitoring sensor unit of each part. Monitoring information aggregation means to be generated;
A perimeter monitoring sensor system comprising: display means for displaying image information and warning information aggregated by the image aggregation means.   The peripheral monitoring sensor unit according to claim 7, wherein the peripheral monitoring sensor unit has a function of outputting clearer peripheral monitoring image information of an object captured by the image sensor when the target detection sensor detects the target. system.

Images