JP2011111000A - Headlight system for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the situation where dazzle is applied to a driver of one's own vehicle. <P>SOLUTION: A headlight system 100 for a vehicle includes: a headlight 10 for a vehicle, whose luminous intensity of light irradiated ahead of the own vehicle is controllable; a vehicle ahead image pick-up camera 40 for imaging ahead of the own vehicle; a reflecting body detecting part 56 for detecting a reflecting body existing ahead of the vehicle based on a picked-up image; a dazzle determination part 46 for determining whether or not the reflected light from the reflecting body applies dazzle to a driver of the own vehicle when the reflecting body is detected; and an irradiation control part 42 for lowering the luminous intensity of irradiation of the headlight 10 for the vehicle until it is decided that dazzle is not applied to the driver when the dazzle determination part 46 determines that dazzle is applied to the driver by the reflected light. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle headlamp system for controlling a vehicle headlamp.

  Conventionally, a high-luminance portion corresponding to a headlight or tail lamp of a preceding vehicle or an oncoming vehicle (hereinafter referred to as “front vehicle” as appropriate) is detected from an image in front of the host vehicle captured by a camera. A vehicular headlamp system that prevents the front vehicle from being dazzled by changing the light distribution pattern of the headlamp of the host vehicle in accordance with the direction of the area is disclosed.

  For example, in Patent Document 1, whether the detected high-intensity part is due to light emitted from a preceding vehicle or whether light from a headlight of the own vehicle is reflected light reflected by a road sign or the like is quickly Techniques that can be determined are disclosed. This technique images the front of the vehicle when the headlamp of the vehicle is turned off, and determines the vehicle ahead based on a high-luminance part in the image. And when a front vehicle is determined, the irradiation characteristic of a headlamp is changed so that the front vehicle may not be dazzled.

  According to this technology, since the image captured by the camera of the own vehicle is an image when the headlamp of the own vehicle is turned off, the light emitted from the headlamp of the own vehicle is a road sign or the like. There is no high-intensity part reflected by. As a result, the front vehicle can be detected quickly, and the headlamp can be controlled in real time so as not to dazzle the front vehicle.

JP 2007-76429 A

  By the way, when the own vehicle is irradiating a high beam, the driver of the own vehicle may be dazzled by reflected light from a road sign or a delineator. The conventional technology such as Patent Document 1 is basically a technology for preventing the other vehicle from being dazzled, and does not consider the point of preventing dazzling the driver of the vehicle.

  This invention is made | formed in view of such a condition, The objective is to provide the vehicle headlamp system which can prevent the situation which gives an illusion to the driver | operator of the own vehicle.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, a vehicle headlamp system according to an aspect of the present invention includes a vehicle headlamp capable of controlling the light intensity of light irradiated to the front of the host vehicle, and an imaging unit that images the front of the host vehicle. And a reflection object detection means for detecting a reflection object existing in front of the vehicle based on the image captured by the image pickup means, and when the reflection object is detected by the reflection object detection means, the reflected light from the reflection object is automatically detected. A value that is determined not to give a dazzle to the driver when it is determined by the dazzling determination means that the reflected light gives a dazzle to the driver. And control means for reducing the illumination intensity of the vehicle headlamp.

  The reflective object is an object that reflects light irradiated by the headlight of the vehicle such as a road sign or a delineator. According to this aspect, when the reflected light from the reflecting object gives an illusion to the driver of the own vehicle, the illumination intensity of the vehicle headlamp is reduced, thereby preventing an illusion to the driver of the own vehicle. it can.

  The camera further comprises gaze point detection means for detecting the gaze point of the driver of the own vehicle, and the dazzling determination means considers the positional relationship between the detected gaze point and the reflective object, and the reflected light from the reflective object drives the own vehicle. It may be determined whether or not the person is dazzled. In this case, it is possible to determine whether or not the reflected light from the reflecting object preferably gives a dazzle to the driver of the own vehicle.

  It further comprises background illuminance detection means for detecting the background illuminance of the reflective object, and the dazzling determination means considers the relationship between the detected background illuminance and the reflected light intensity from the reflective object, and the reflected light from the reflective object is driven by the vehicle. It may be determined whether or not the person is dazzled. Whether or not the driver is dazzled by the reflected light from the reflecting object is affected by the background illuminance. Therefore, by using the information from the background illuminance detection means in this way, it is possible to improve the determination accuracy as to whether or not the driver is dazzled.

  The vehicle headlamp is controlled so as to repeat light irradiation and non-irradiation alternately, and the imaging means images the front of the vehicle when light is irradiated and when it is not irradiated, and the image when irradiated is not The irradiation object image is generated, and the reflecting object detection means detects the high luminance part in the irradiation image and the non-irradiation image, and exists in the irradiation image but does not exist in the non-irradiation image. May be determined as a reflective object. In this case, the reflective object can be detected with high accuracy.

  The control means may reduce the illumination intensity of the vehicle headlamp by reducing the ratio of the irradiation time to the irradiation / non-irradiation cycle. In this case, the illumination intensity of the vehicle headlamp can be easily reduced.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the situation which gives an illusion to the driver | operator of the own vehicle can be prevented.

1 is a schematic horizontal sectional view of a vehicle headlamp used in a vehicle headlamp system according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is the schematic of the light source unit of the lamp for high beams. It is a figure for demonstrating the light distribution pattern formed with the vehicle headlamp. It is a functional block diagram for demonstrating the vehicle headlamp system which concerns on this embodiment. FIGS. 5A to 5C are timing charts for explaining lighting control of the first individual light source to the third individual light source. It is a figure for demonstrating the specific operation | movement of the vehicle headlamp system.

  The present invention will be described below based on preferred embodiments with reference to the drawings. The same or equivalent components, members, and processes shown in the drawings are denoted by the same reference numerals, and repeated descriptions are omitted as appropriate. The embodiments do not limit the invention but are exemplifications, and all features and combinations thereof described in the embodiments are not necessarily essential to the invention.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic horizontal sectional view of a vehicle headlamp 10 used in a vehicle headlamp system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  The vehicle headlamp 10 according to the present embodiment includes a low beam lamp 20L and a high beam lamp in a lamp chamber formed by a lamp body 12 and a translucent cover 14 attached to a front end opening of the lamp body 12. 20H is accommodated. Hereinafter, the low beam lamp 20L and the high beam lamp 20H are collectively referred to as a “lamp”. Each lamp is attached to the lamp body 12 by a support member (not shown). Further, an extension member 16 having an opening in an area where the lamp is present is fixed to the lamp body 12 or the translucent cover 14, and an area between the front opening of the lamp body 12 and the lamp is covered with respect to the front. .

  The low beam lamp 20L is a conventionally known reflection type lamp, and includes a light source bulb 21 and a reflector 23. The low beam lamp 20L reflects the light emitted from the light source bulb 21 to the reflector 23, cuts a part of the light traveling forward from the reflector 23 with a light shielding plate (not shown), and has a predetermined cut-off line. A light pattern is formed. A shade 25 is provided at the tip of the light source bulb 21 to cut the light emitted directly from the light source bulb 21 forward. The shape of the low beam lamp 20L is not particularly limited to this, and may be a projector-type lamp similar to the high beam lamp 20H described later.

  The high beam lamp 20H is a projector-type lamp, and includes a projection lens 22, a light source unit 24 including a light source 26 for high beam irradiation, and a holder 28 that holds the projection lens 22 and the light source unit 24. The projection lens 22 is a plano-convex aspheric lens having a convex front surface and a flat rear surface, and is disposed on an optical axis Ax extending in the vehicle front-rear direction. The projection lens 22 is configured to project an image on the rear focal plane including the rear focal point F as a reverse image on a vertical virtual screen disposed in front of the lamp. The periphery of the projection lens 22 is held in the front end annular groove of the holder 28.

  The light source unit 24 is held on the rear end side of the holder 28 in a state where the light source 26 is disposed rearward of the rear focal point F of the projection lens 22 so that the light source 26 faces frontward in the optical axis Ax direction. The light source unit 24 directly irradiates light from the light source 26 toward the projection lens 22. The holder 28 is attached to the lamp body 12 via a support member (not shown).

  FIG. 2 is a schematic view of the light source unit 24 of the high beam lamp 20H.

  The light source unit 24 includes a light source 26, a support plate 30, and a heat radiating plate 32. The light source 26 is composed of a light emitting element such as a light emitting diode (LED), for example, and is fixed to the front surface of the support plate 30 so that the light emitting surface faces forward in the optical axis Ax direction. The light source 26 is arranged such that its center point is located below the rear focal point F of the projection lens 22. The light source 26 is divided into three individual light sources: a first individual light source 26a, a second individual light source 26b, and a third individual light source 26c. The emission intensity of these individual light sources can be controlled independently by an irradiation control unit 42 described later. Each of the first individual light source 26a to the third individual light source 26c has a substantially rectangular shape and is arranged adjacent to each other in a horizontal row. Further, the first individual light source 26a and the third individual light source 26c are larger in the left-right direction than the second individual light source 26b. The second individual light source 26b is disposed on the optical axis Ax, and the first individual light source 26a is disposed on the right side and the third individual light source 26c is disposed on the left side when viewed from the front.

  The heat radiating plate 32 is a member for radiating the heat generated from the light source 26, and is held on the vehicle rear side surface of the support plate 30. The light source unit 24 is fixed to the holder 28 via the support plate 30.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining a light distribution pattern formed by the vehicle headlamp 10. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a front perspective view of the vehicle when the vehicle is traveling on a straight paved road with one lane on one side (two lanes on both sides). FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a low beam light distribution pattern PL and a high beam light distribution pattern PH formed on a virtual vertical screen arranged at a position 25 m ahead of the vehicle. Further, FIG. 3 shows a center line CL, a host lane side line MRL, and an opposite lane side line ORL. The own lane side line MRL extends in the lower left direction from the HV point (intersection of the horizontal line HH line and the vertical line VV line) that is the vanishing point of the perspective view, and is on the center line CL and the opposite lane side. The line ORL extends in the lower right direction from the point HV.

  The low beam light distribution pattern PL is formed by the irradiation light from the low beam lamp 20L. The light distribution pattern for low beam PL shown in FIG. 3 is a light distribution pattern that is considered to prevent glare from oncoming vehicles and pedestrians during driving such as urban driving in areas where traffic regulations are left-hand traffic. Cut-off lines CL1, CL2, and CL3 having different left and right steps are provided at the upper edge. The cut-off line CL1 is formed on the right side of the VV line of the vehicle headlamp 10 so as to extend in the horizontal direction as an oncoming lane side cut-off line. The cut-off line CL2 is formed on the left side of the VV line so as to extend in the horizontal direction at a position higher than the cut-off line CL1 as the own lane side cut-off line. The cut-off line CL3 is formed as an oblique cut-off line that connects the end of the cut-off line CL2 on the VV line side and the end of the cut-off line CL1 on the VV line side. The cut-off line CL3 extends from the intersection of the cut-off line CL1 and the VV line obliquely upward to the left with an inclination angle of 45 °.

  The high beam light distribution pattern PH is formed by irradiation light from the high beam lamp 20H. The high beam light distribution pattern PH is formed in addition to the low beam light distribution pattern PL.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the light distribution area of the high beam light distribution pattern PH is divided into a first divided area PHa to a third divided area PHc arranged in a substantially rectangular shape and in a horizontal row. The first divided region PHa is formed by the irradiation light from the first individual light source 26a, the second divided region PHb is formed by the irradiation light from the second individual light source 26b, and the third divided region PHc is from the third individual light source 26c. It is formed by the irradiation light. The second divided area PHb is arranged at the center of the high beam light distribution pattern PH, and the first divided area PHa is arranged on the right side and the third divided area PHc is arranged on the left side when facing the front of the vehicle. The second divided area mainly covers the area far from the own lane and the opposite lane including the HV point, and the first divided area PHa mainly covers the area outside the far opposite lane, The third divided area PHc mainly covers the area outside the far lane. When the low beam light distribution pattern PL is irradiated, the first divided region PHa to the third divided region PHc are selectively added to the low beam light distribution pattern PL while adjusting the irradiation light intensity. A special light distribution pattern with improved visibility on the road surface can be formed.

  FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram for explaining the vehicle headlamp system 100 according to the present embodiment. The vehicle headlamp system 100 includes the vehicle headlamp 10, the vehicle front imaging camera 40, the irradiation control unit 42, the image processing unit 44, the dazzling determination unit 46, and the background illuminance detection unit 48. And a gazing point detection unit 50.

  The irradiation control unit 42 controls the irradiation of the vehicle headlamp 10. The irradiation control unit 42 turns on / off the low beam lamp 20L and the high beam lamp 20H of the vehicle headlamp 10 according to an instruction from the driver. For example, when the driver gives an instruction for low beam irradiation, the irradiation control unit 42 turns on the light source bulb 21 of the low beam lamp 20L and irradiates the low beam light distribution pattern PL. When the driver gives an instruction to irradiate the high beam, the irradiation control unit 42 turns on the first individual light source 26a to the third individual light source 26c of the high beam lamp 20H in addition to the light source bulb 21, thereby distributing the low beam light. The pattern PL and the high beam light distribution pattern PH are irradiated.

  FIGS. 5A to 5C are timing charts for explaining lighting control of the first individual light source 26a to the third individual light source 26c. In the present embodiment, the irradiation control unit 42 controls each individual light source so as to alternately turn on and off. By such lighting control, irradiation and non-irradiation are alternately repeated in the first divided region PHa to the third divided region PHc.

  The irradiation controller 42 can change the duty ratio, which is the ratio of the lighting time with respect to the blinking cycle, for each individual light source. 5A to 5C show a case where the duty ratio of the first individual light source 26a is 80%, the duty ratio of the second individual light source 26b is 90%, and the duty ratio of the third individual light source 26c is 80%. Show. Thus, by changing the duty ratio of the first individual light source 26a to the third individual light source 26c, the average irradiation light intensity of the first divided region PHa to the third divided region PHc can be changed. Thereby, for example, the irradiation light intensity of the first divided area PHa and the third divided area PHc that do not require so high irradiation is increased while the irradiation light intensity of the second divided area PHb that generally requires light having high intensity is increased. Control such as lowering is possible. In this embodiment, the blinking cycle of the individual light source is set to a cycle that is short enough to be recognized by human eyes.

  The vehicle front imaging camera 40 shown in FIG. 4 is configured to operate in conjunction with the irradiation control unit 42. The vehicle front imaging camera 40 has its own vehicle at the timing when all of the first individual light source 26a to the third individual light source 26c are turned on and when all of the first individual light source 26a to the third individual light source 26c are turned off. Take an image of the front. In FIG. 5, imaging is performed at time t1 and time t3 when all of the first individual light sources 26a to 3c are turned off, and when all of the first individual light sources 26a to 3c are turned on. A state in which imaging is performed is shown at t2. By performing imaging in this way, an image in front of the host vehicle when the first divided region PHa to the third divided region PHc are all irradiated (hereinafter, referred to as “image during irradiation” as appropriate) and the first divided region. An image in front of the vehicle when the region PHa to the third divided region PHc are not irradiated (hereinafter referred to as “non-irradiation image” as appropriate) is generated. The irradiation-time image and non-irradiation-time image captured by the vehicle front imaging camera 40 are sent to the image processing unit 44.

  The image processing unit 44 includes a high brightness portion detection unit 52, a light emitting object detection unit 54, a forward vehicle detection unit 53, and a reflection object detection unit 56.

  The high-intensity part detection unit 52 detects a bright area (hereinafter, appropriately referred to as “high-intensity part”) in the irradiation image and the non-irradiation image that is equal to or higher than a predetermined reference luminance. The reference luminance is set to a level lower than the luminance in the bright area by the headlamp of the oncoming vehicle and the tail lamp of the preceding vehicle so that the preceding vehicle can be detected.

  The luminescent object detection unit 54 determines that a high luminance part existing in the non-irradiation image is a luminescent object. The light emitting object is an object that emits light such as a vehicle ahead. The reflective object detection unit 56 determines that a high-luminance part that exists in the image at the time of irradiation but does not exist in the image at the time of non-irradiation is a reflective object. The reflective object is an object that reflects light irradiated by the host vehicle such as a road sign or a delineator (line-of-sight guide). In this way, by comparing the presence / absence of the high-luminance portion between the irradiated image and the non-irradiated image, it is possible to distinguish and detect the light emitting object and the reflective object existing in front of the vehicle.

  During high beam irradiation, the intensity of reflected light from road signs and delineators may be quite high. In such a case, it is difficult to determine whether the detected high-intensity part is a luminescent object or a reflective object simply by capturing an image during irradiation. In addition, when only the non-irradiation image is captured, the detected high-luminance part can be determined as a light emitting object, but a reflective object cannot be detected. According to the present embodiment, it is possible to distinguish and detect the light emitting object and the reflective object with high accuracy by using the irradiation image and the non-irradiation image.

  When a light emitting object is detected by the light emitting object detecting unit 54, the front vehicle detecting unit 53 determines whether or not the light emitting object is a front vehicle based on the non-irradiation image. There are various methods for determining the forward vehicle. For example, if a high-luminance part of a pair of red light or white light is detected, it is possible to determine that the luminescent object is the forward vehicle.

  Information on the preceding vehicle detected by the preceding vehicle detection unit 53 is sent to the irradiation control unit 42. The irradiation control unit 42 determines whether or not the detected forward vehicle exists in the first divided region PHa to the third divided region PHc. When the front vehicle exists in the first divided region PHa to the third divided region PHc during the high beam irradiation, the irradiation control unit 42 sets the irradiation time for the irradiation / non-irradiation period of the divided region where the front vehicle exists. The duty ratio of the corresponding individual light source is lowered so that the ratio is lowered. Thereby, the glare given to a forward vehicle can be reduced, ensuring a driver | operator's forward visibility.

  The gaze point detection unit 50 detects the gaze point of the driver of the own vehicle. Here, the “gaze point” means a position viewed by the driver of the host vehicle in front of the vehicle. This gazing point can be detected based on information from a navigation system 58, a steering sensor 60, a yaw rate sensor 62, and the like provided in the vehicle. For example, by referring to information from the navigation system 58, the steering sensor 60, the yaw rate sensor 62, etc., it can be detected whether the vehicle is traveling on a straight road or a curved road. When the host vehicle is traveling on a straight road as shown in FIG. 3, the gazing point detection unit 50 can determine that the driver's gazing point is located in a region in front of the vehicle (second divided region PHb). . In addition, when the host vehicle is traveling on a curved road that turns to the right, the gazing point detection unit 50 can determine that the driver's gazing point is located in an area on the right front side of the vehicle (first divided area PHa). .

  In addition, a driver imaging camera 64 that captures the driver's eyeball may be provided in the vehicle, and the gazing point may be detected more accurately based on an image captured by the driver imaging camera 64. Since various methods are known for detecting a point of interest by measuring the movement of the eyeball, detailed description in this specification will be omitted.

  When the reflection object detection unit 56 detects a reflection object, the dazzling determination unit 46 determines whether or not the reflected light from the reflection object gives a dazzle to the driver of the vehicle. This determination can be made in consideration of the positional relationship between the detected position of the reflecting object and the driver's gaze point detected by the gaze point detection unit 50. For example, when the divided area where the reflective object exists and the divided area where the driver's gazing point are the same, the dazzling determination unit 46 reflects the reflected light from the reflective object to the driver of the own vehicle. Judged to be dazzling. Alternatively, when the distance between the position of the reflecting object and the driver's gazing point is smaller than a predetermined value, the gazing point detection unit 50 causes the reflected light from the reflecting object to give an illusion to the driver of the own vehicle. May be determined.

  The determination of dazzle may be made by referring to the luminous intensity of the reflected light from the reflecting object in addition to the positional relationship between the reflecting object and the gazing point. For example, the dazzling determination unit 46 has the same divided area where the reflective object exists and the divided area where the driver's gazing point exists, and the luminous intensity of the reflected light from the reflective object is a predetermined value or more. In addition, it is determined that the reflected light from the reflecting object gives an illusion to the driver of the vehicle. In this case, it is possible to improve the determination accuracy of dazzling.

  When it is determined by the dazzling determination unit 46 that the reflected light from the reflecting object gives dazzling to the driver, the irradiation control unit 42 reflects the reflection up to a value determined by the dazzling determination unit 46 that does not give the driver dazzling. The irradiation light intensity of the divided area where the object exists is reduced. This reduction of the irradiation light intensity can be performed by reducing the duty ratio of the corresponding individual light source so that the ratio of the irradiation time to the irradiation / non-irradiation period of the divided area where the reflecting object exists is reduced. Thereby, since the luminous intensity of the irradiation light to the reflective object which is giving the driver a dazzle falls, the situation which gives a dazzle to the driver of the own vehicle can be prevented.

  Whether or not the driver is dazzled by the reflected light from the reflecting object is affected by the background illuminance of the reflecting object. For example, when the background illuminance is high, the driver is less likely to be dazzled even if the reflected light of the reflecting object has a certain level of light intensity. Therefore, the vehicle headlamp system 100 is provided with a background illuminance detection unit 48 that detects the background illuminance of the reflecting object, and the dazzling determination unit 46 considers the relationship between the detected background illuminance and the reflected light intensity from the reflecting object. You may determine whether the reflected light from a reflective object gives a dazzle to the driver | operator of the own vehicle. In other words, in the case of a certain background illuminance, the relationship of how many times the reflected light intensity is greater than the driver being dazzled is held in advance, and the dazzling is determined with reference to this relationship. In this way, the accuracy of illusion determination can be further improved by taking into account background illuminance information.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining a specific operation of the vehicle headlamp system 100. FIG. 6 shows a low-beam distribution pattern PL and a high-beam distribution pattern PH superimposed on a perspective view in front of the host vehicle when the vehicle is traveling on a straight paved road with one lane on one side as in FIG. It is a figure. FIG. 6 shows a plurality of delineators 600 provided on the left and right road shoulders.

  In the situation shown in FIG. 6, the reflecting object detection unit 56 of the vehicle headlamp system 100 detects the delineator 600 based on the irradiation time image and the non-irradiation image. In addition, the gazing point detection unit 50 detects the driver's gazing point PG. Here, it is assumed that the detected gazing point PG is located in the vicinity of the HV point. Thereafter, since the gazing point PG is present in the second divided area PHb, the dazzling determination unit 46 causes the reflected light from the delineator 600 present in the second divided area PHb to give a dazzle to the driver of the own vehicle. Is determined. And the irradiation control part 42 reduces the duty ratio of the 2nd separate light source 26b corresponding to 2nd division area PHb. Thereby, since the irradiation light intensity to the delineator 600 which exists in 2nd division area PHb falls, the reflected light from the delineator 600 falls and the situation which gives a driver | operator an illusion can be prevented.

  In the present embodiment, the irradiation light intensity is reduced only in the divided areas where there are reflection objects that give the driver a dazzle, and the irradiation light intensity is maintained in the other divided areas. Therefore, since the light distribution area where the illumination intensity decreases can be minimized, it is possible to prevent the dazzling while providing the driver with a good field of view. Note that the actual gaze point of the driver does not remain in a certain place during driving. For example, even when the gazing point detection unit 50 detects that the gazing point PG exists in the second divided region PHb, the actual gazing point may instantaneously move to the third divided region PHc. Therefore, it is meaningful to maintain a high irradiation light intensity in the divided areas other than the divided areas where the reflecting object giving the dazzle exists.

  The present invention has been described above based on the embodiment. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that these embodiments are exemplifications, and that various modifications can be made to the combination of each component and each processing process, and such modifications are also within the scope of the present invention.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the high-beam light distribution pattern is divided into three divided areas is illustrated, but the number of divided areas is not limited to three. It is preferable to divide into more divided regions because the light distribution pattern can be adjusted more finely.

  In the above-described embodiment, the high beam lamp that can irradiate the high beam light distribution pattern by dividing it into a plurality of divided regions is used. However, a normal high beam that irradiates a single undivided high beam light distribution pattern is used. A lamp may be used. Moreover, although LED was illustrated as a light source in the above-mentioned embodiment, it is not restricted to this, Other light sources, such as a bulb | ball, can also be used.

  In the above-described embodiment, the reflection object is detected by using the “irradiation image” and the “non-irradiation image”. However, the method of detecting the reflection object is not limited to this. A reflective object may be detected.

  PHa 1st divided area, PHb 2nd divided area, PHc 3rd divided area, 10 vehicle headlamp, 20L low beam lamp, 20H high beam lamp, 21 light source bulb, 26a first individual light source, 26b second individual light source , 26c Third individual light source, 40 Vehicle forward imaging camera, 42 Irradiation control unit, 44 Image processing unit, 46 Illusion determination unit, 48 Background illuminance detection unit, 50 Gaze point detection unit, 52 High brightness portion detection unit, 54 Light emitting object A detection unit, 53 a forward vehicle detection unit, 56 a reflected object detection unit, 100 a vehicle headlamp system, and 600 a delineator.

Claims (5)

A vehicle headlamp capable of controlling the intensity of the light emitted in front of the vehicle;
Imaging means for imaging the front of the vehicle;
A reflecting object detecting means for detecting a reflecting object existing in front of the vehicle based on the image picked up by the image pickup means;
Dazzling determination means for determining whether or not the reflected light from the reflecting object gives a dazzle to the driver of the vehicle when the reflecting object is detected by the reflecting object detection means;
When it is determined by the dazzling determination means that the reflected light is dazzling to the driver, the control means for reducing the illumination intensity of the vehicle headlamp to a value determined not to give the driver dazzling,
A vehicle headlamp system comprising: It further includes a gazing point detection means for detecting a gazing point of the driver of the own vehicle,
The dazzling determination means determines whether or not the reflected light from the reflecting object gives a dazzling to the driver of the own vehicle in consideration of the positional relationship between the detected gazing point and the reflecting object. The vehicle headlamp system according to claim 1. It further comprises background illuminance detection means for detecting the background illuminance of the reflective object,
The dazzling determination means determines whether or not the reflected light from the reflecting object gives a dazzling to the driver of the vehicle in consideration of the relationship between the detected background illuminance and the reflected light intensity from the reflecting object. The vehicle headlamp system according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle headlamp system is a vehicle headlamp system. The vehicle headlamp is controlled to alternately repeat irradiation and non-irradiation of light,
The imaging means images the front of the vehicle at the time of light irradiation and non-irradiation to generate an irradiation image and a non-irradiation image,
The reflective object detecting means detects a high luminance part in the irradiation image and the non-irradiation image, and reflects a high luminance part that exists in the irradiation image but does not exist in the non-irradiation image. The vehicle headlamp system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the vehicle headlamp system is determined.   5. The vehicle headlamp system according to claim 4, wherein the control unit lowers the irradiation light intensity of the vehicle headlamp by reducing a ratio of an irradiation time to an irradiation / non-irradiation cycle. .

Images