JP2022180043A - Passenger photographing device - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a passenger photographing device that is downsized as a whole.SOLUTION: A passenger photographing device 1 that photographs a passenger comprises: a camera 3, provided in an enclosure, which can photograph both of a driver and a passenger at the same time; a first lighting part 4, provided in the enclosure so that a light axis points to the driver, which has half-value angle characteristics by which portion of cast light is emitted to the passenger; and a second lighting part 5, provided in the enclosure so that a light axis points to the passenger, which has half-value angle characteristics by which portion of cast light is emitted to the driver.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to an occupant imaging device.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a driver monitor has been provided as a system for monitoring the state of a driver. The driver monitoring monitor is arranged, for example, on the upper surface of the instrument panel in such a posture that the imaging direction of the camera is directed toward the driver's seat. The driver monitoring monitor captures an image of the driver's face illuminated by light from the light source with a camera, analyzes the captured face image, and monitors the driver's condition. The driver monitoring monitor determines, for example, inattentiveness, closed eyes, drowsiness, posture, etc., from the face image, and sequentially outputs the determination results to an electronic control unit (hereinafter referred to as an ECU (Electronic Control Unit)) that controls automatic driving, for example. (see Patent Document 1, for example).

JP 2019-38471 A

A wide-angle camera capable of capturing images of both the driver and the passenger at the same time is used in an occupant imaging device that images not only the driver but also both the driver and the passenger. In that case, in order to irradiate the driver and passenger with sufficient light, it is necessary to install a mechanism that diffuses light such as a reflector or diffuser in the lighting unit, increase the number of lighting lamps, or expand the irradiation range. was necessary. However, with such measures, there are problems such as an increase in the size of the illumination unit and an increase in the amount of heat generated, making it difficult to reduce the size of the entire device.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an occupant imaging apparatus that can be downsized as a whole.

According to the invention described in claim 1, a camera (3) is provided in the housing and capable of capturing images of both the driver and the passenger at the same time; A first lighting unit (4) having a half-value angle characteristic such that a part of the light is irradiated to the passenger, and an optical axis is provided in the housing with the optical axis facing the passenger, and a part of the projected light is irradiated to the driver and a second lighting section (5) having half-value angle characteristics such as

The irradiation range of the light projected from the first lighting unit covers not only the driver but also the passenger, and the irradiation range of the light projected from the second lighting unit covers not only the passenger but also the driver. It is possible to reduce the size of the entire device while avoiding an increase in size and an increase in the amount of heat generated.

A diagram schematically showing the first embodiment The figure which shows the aspect by which the face of the driver is illuminated. FIG. 4 shows a state in which the passenger's face is illuminated; FIG. 10 illustrates how both the driver and passenger faces are illuminated Schematically showing the second embodiment

Several embodiments will be described below with reference to the drawings. In each embodiment shown below, the same reference numerals are given to parts corresponding to the contents described in the preceding embodiments, and redundant description may be omitted. The following description is based on the premise that the occupant imaging device is installed in an automobile in which the driver's seat is provided on the left side as viewed in the forward direction of the vehicle. Further, the horizontal direction means the lateral direction of the vehicle, and the vertical direction means the vertical direction of the vehicle.

(First embodiment)
A first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. FIG. The occupant imaging device 1 is one component of a driver status monitor (registered trademark) (hereinafter referred to as DSM (Driver Status Monitor)) that monitors the state of the driver. The DSM uses a camera to capture an image of the driver's face illuminated by light from a light source, analyzes the captured face image, and monitors the driver's condition. The DSM determines, for example, inattentiveness, closed eyes, drowsiness, posture, etc., from the face image, and sequentially outputs the determination results to an ECU or the like that controls automatic driving.

The occupant imaging device 1 is a device that mainly captures images of the driver and the passenger, and is arranged, for example, on the center display or the dashboard in the vehicle interior, in a location facing the vicinity of the center of the driver's seat and the passenger's seat. The occupant imaging device 1 includes a camera 3, a driver-side LED 4, and a passenger-side LED 5 on the back side of a front panel 2 forming part of the housing. The back side of the front panel 2 is dry. It is the direction opposite to the direction in which the bus and passenger seats are located. The driver-side LED 4 corresponds to the first lighting section, and the passenger-side LED 5 corresponds to the second lighting section. When the occupant imaging device 1 is arranged sideways, the driver-side LED 4 and the passenger-side LED 5 are arranged horizontally.

The camera 3 is mounted on the surface side of the camera substrate 6 . A connector 7 to which a data communication line (not shown) can be connected is mounted on the back side of the camera substrate 6 . Image data captured by the camera 3 is input to a signal processing circuit (not shown) through a data communication line connected to the connector 7 . It should be noted that a configuration in which the connector 7 is omitted may be employed, and image data captured by the camera 3 may be input to the signal processing circuit via the camera substrate 6 without the connector 7 . The camera 3 has a wide-angle lens 8 with an angle of view not exceeding 180 degrees, and the wide-angle lens 8 is arranged on the back side of the front panel 2 . A filter 9 capable of transmitting wavelengths of light emitted from the LEDs 4 and 5 is provided at a portion of the front panel 2 corresponding to the front of the wide-angle lens 8 . The optical axis of the camera 3 is the axis indicated by A0 in FIG. 1, and faces the vicinity of the center between the driver's seat and the passenger's seat. The angle of view of the camera 3 depends on the size of the filter 9 in the surface direction, and is within the range indicated by A1 and A2 in FIG. ing. That is, when the driver is seated in the driver's seat and the passenger is seated in the passenger's seat, the camera 3 can simultaneously image both the driver's face and the passenger's face. The imaging data including both the face image and the face are output to the signal processing circuit via the data communication line.

The driver-side LEDs 4 are mounted on the surface side of the driver-side LED substrate 10, and are driven by being supplied with power via a power supply line (not shown) to emit near-infrared light. A filter 11 capable of blocking visible light and transmitting the wavelength of light emitted from the driver-side LED 4 is provided at a portion of the front panel 2 corresponding to the front of the driver-side LED 4 . Part of the emitted light is transmitted through the filter 11 and irradiated to the outside of the housing. The optical axis of the driver-side LED 4 is the axis indicated by B0 in FIG. 1, is at the same angle as the optical axis of the camera 3 in the vertical direction, and faces the driver's seat in the horizontal direction. The irradiation range of the driver-side LED 4 depends on the size of the filter 11 in the surface direction, and is the range indicated by B1 and B2 in FIG. That is, the irradiation range of the light that has passed through the filter 11 out of the light projected from the driver-side LED 4 becomes the irradiation range of the driver-side LED 4 . The driver-side LED 4 can illuminate the face of the driver sitting in the driver's seat.

The outer edge of the irradiation range of the driver-side LED 4 , that is, the light rays outside the light emitted from the driver-side LED 4 are substantially parallel to the angle of view of the camera 3 . Further, the driver-side LED 4 has a half-value angle characteristic such that part of the light is irradiated to the passenger seat, and half the light energy is emitted at the end of the irradiation range of the driver-side LED 4, that is, at the portion where the viewing angle is maximum. It is designed to maintain the above brightness. A shielding wall portion 14 is provided between the filter 9 and the filter 11 on the back side of the front panel 2 . Part of the light emitted from the driver-side LED 4 is reflected by the shielding wall 14, so that part of the light emitted from the driver-side LED 4 does not pass through filters other than the filter 11. Prevents light leaks.

The passenger-side LEDs 5 are mounted on the surface side of the passenger-side LED substrate 12, and are driven by being supplied with power via a power supply line (not shown) to emit near-infrared light. A filter 13 capable of blocking visible light and transmitting the wavelength of light emitted from the passenger side LED 5 is provided at a portion of the front panel 2 corresponding to the front of the passenger side LED 5 . Part of the emitted light is transmitted through the filter 13 and irradiated to the outside of the housing. The optical axis of the passenger-side LED 5 is the axis indicated by C0 in FIG. 1, is at the same angle as the optical axis of the camera 3 in the vertical direction, and faces the passenger seat in the horizontal direction. The irradiation range of the passenger-side LED 5 depends on the size of the filter 13 in the surface direction, and is the range indicated by C1 and C2 in FIG. 1, and includes the vicinity of the headrest of the passenger seat. That is, the irradiation range of the light that has passed through the filter 13 among the light projected from the passenger side LED 5 becomes the irradiation range of the passenger side LED 5 . The passenger-side LED 5 can illuminate the face of the passenger sitting on the passenger seat.

The outer edge of the irradiation range of the passenger-side LED 5 , that is, the light rays outside the light emitted from the passenger-side LED 5 are substantially parallel to the angle of view of the camera 3 . In addition, the passenger side LED 5 has a half-value angle characteristic such that part of the light is irradiated to the driver's seat, and half the light energy is emitted at the end of the irradiation range of the passenger side LED 5, that is, at the portion where the viewing angle is maximum. It is designed to maintain the above brightness. A shielding wall portion 15 is provided between the filter 9 and the filter 13 on the back side of the front panel 2 . Part of the light emitted from the passenger-side LED 5 is reflected by the shielding wall portion 15, so that part of the light emitted from the passenger-side LED 5 does not pass through filters other than the filter 13. Prevents light leaks.

Further, the intersection point X0 between the inner ray of light emitted from the driver-side LED 4 and the inner ray of light emitted from the passenger-side LED 5 is positioned close to the front surface of the camera 3 .

In the above-described configuration, when the driver is seated in the driver's seat and the driver-side LED 4 is driven, as shown in FIG. The face becomes clear. When the passenger is seated in the passenger seat and the passenger side LED 5 is driven, as shown in FIG. . A state in which the driver is seated in the driver's seat and the passenger is seated in the passenger's seat. When both the driver-side LED 4 and the passenger-side LED 5 are driven, as shown in FIG. At the same time, the face of the passenger is irradiated with the light emitted from the passenger-side LED 5 and the face of the passenger becomes clear.

The above description is based on the premise that the occupant imaging device is installed in a vehicle in which the driver's seat is provided on the left side facing the forward direction of the vehicle. If the vehicle is equipped with an occupant imaging device, the left-right relationship is reversed. In addition, while the driver-side LED 4 and the passenger-side LED 5 are arranged horizontally when the occupant imaging device 1 is arranged horizontally, the driver-side LED 4 is arranged horizontally when the occupant imaging device 1 is arranged vertically. And the passenger-side LEDs 5 are aligned vertically, and for example, one of the optical axis of the driver-side LED 4 and the passenger-side LED 5 is adjusted to tilt upward while the other tilts downward.

As described above, according to the first embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
The irradiation range of the light emitted from the driver-side LED 4 covers not only the driver but also the passenger, and the irradiation range of the light emitted from the passenger-side LED 5 covers not only the passenger but also the driver. It is possible to reduce the size of the entire device while avoiding an increase in the size of the illumination unit for irradiating light and an increase in the amount of heat generated.

In addition, the outer rays of the light emitted from each of the driver side LED 4 and the passenger side LED 5 are substantially parallel to the angle of view of the camera 3, thereby suppressing an increase in the size of the filters 11 and 13. The whole can be miniaturized.

In addition, the intersecting point X0 between the inner ray of light emitted from the driver-side LED 4 and the inner ray of light emitted from the passenger-side LED 5 is positioned close to the front surface of the camera 3, thereby reducing the light gap. It can be made as small as possible, and it is possible to appropriately recognize the behavior of the driver and passenger performed at a position close to the front of the camera 3 .

(Second embodiment)
A second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In the first embodiment, the angle of view of the camera 3 does not exceed 180 degrees, but in the second embodiment, the angle of view of the camera exceeds 180 degrees. In this case, the occupant imaging device 21 is a device that images not only the driver and the passenger but also the occupants in the rear seats, and is arranged behind the overhead console or rearview mirror in the vehicle interior, for example. The occupant imaging device 21 includes a camera 23 fitted to a front panel 22 forming part of the housing, and a driver side LED 24 and a passenger side LED 25 on the back side of the front panel 22 . The driver-side LED 24 corresponds to the first lighting section, and the passenger-side LED 25 corresponds to the second lighting section. In this case as well, the driver-side LED 24 and the passenger-side LED 25 are arranged horizontally when the occupant imaging device 21 is arranged sideways.

The camera 23 is mounted on the surface side of the camera board 26 . A connector 27 to which a data communication line (not shown) can be connected is mounted on the back side of the camera substrate 26 . Also in this case, the configuration may be such that the connector 27 is omitted. The camera 23 has a fish-eye lens 28 with an angle of view exceeding 180 degrees, and unlike the wide-angle lens 8 described in the first embodiment, the fish-eye lens 28 is positioned on the front side of the front panel 2, that is, the fish-eye lens 28 is positioned on the front side. It is arranged so as to protrude from the front side of the panel 2 . The optical axis of the camera 23 is the axis indicated by A10 in FIG. 5, and faces the vicinity of the center between the driver's seat and the passenger's seat. The angle of view of the camera 23 is within the range indicated by A11 and A12 in FIG. 5, and includes both the area around the headrest of the driver's seat and the area around the headrest of the passenger's seat. That is, the camera 23 can simultaneously capture both the face of the driver sitting in the driver's seat and the face of the passenger sitting in the passenger's seat, similarly to the camera 3 described in the first embodiment.

The driver-side LEDs 24 are mounted on the surface side of the driver-side LED substrate 29, and are driven by being supplied with power via a power supply line (not shown) to emit near-infrared light. A filter 30 capable of blocking visible light and transmitting wavelengths of light emitted from the driver-side LEDs 24 is provided at a portion of the front panel 22 corresponding to the front of the driver-side LEDs 24 . Part of the emitted light is transmitted through the filter 30 and irradiated to the outside of the housing. The optical axis of the driver-side LED 24 is the axis indicated by B10 in FIG. 5, is at the same angle as the optical axis of the camera 3 in the vertical direction, and faces the driver's seat in the horizontal direction. The irradiation range of the driver-side LED 24 depends on the size of the filter 30 in the surface direction, and is the range indicated by B11 and B12 in FIG. That is, the irradiation range of the light that has passed through the filter 30 among the light projected from the driver-side LED 24 becomes the irradiation range of the driver-side LED 24 . The driver-side LED 24 can illuminate the face of the driver sitting in the driver's seat.

The outer edge of the irradiation range of the driver-side LED 24 , that is, the light rays outside the light projected from the driver-side LED 24 are substantially parallel to the angle of view of the camera 23 . In addition, the driver-side LED 24 has a half-value angle characteristic such that part of the light is irradiated to the passenger seat, and half the light energy is emitted at the end of the irradiation range of the driver-side LED 24, that is, at the portion where the viewing angle is maximum. It is designed to maintain the above brightness.

The passenger-side LEDs 25 are mounted on the surface side of the passenger-side LED substrate 31, and are driven by being supplied with power via a power supply line (not shown) to emit near-infrared light. A filter 32 capable of blocking visible light and transmitting the wavelength of light emitted from the passenger side LED 25 is provided at a portion of the front panel 22 corresponding to the front of the passenger side LED 25 . Part of the emitted light is transmitted through the filter 32 and irradiated to the outside of the housing. The optical axis of the passenger-side LED 25 is the axis indicated by C10 in FIG. 5, has the same angle as the optical axis of the camera 23 in the vertical direction, and faces the passenger seat in the horizontal direction. The irradiation range of the passenger side LED 25 depends on the size of the filter 32 in the plane direction, and is the range indicated by C11 and C12 in FIG. 5, and includes the vicinity of the headrest of the passenger seat. That is, the irradiation range of the light that has passed through the filter 32 out of the light projected from the passenger side LED 25 becomes the irradiation range of the passenger side LED 25 . The passenger-side LED 25 can illuminate the face of the passenger sitting on the passenger seat.

The outer edge of the irradiation range of the passenger-side LED 25 , that is, the light rays outside the light emitted from the passenger-side LED 25 are substantially parallel to the angle of view of the camera 23 . In addition, the passenger side LED 25 has a half value angle characteristic such that part of the light is irradiated to the driver's seat. It is designed to maintain the above brightness.

In the second embodiment, since the fisheye lens 28 is arranged on the front side of the front panel 2 as described above, members corresponding to the shielding walls 14 and 15 described in the first embodiment are omitted. . Also in this case, the intersection point X10 between the inner ray of light emitted from the driver-side LED 24 and the inner ray of light emitted from the passenger-side LED 25 is positioned close to the front surface of the camera 23. . The distance from the camera 23 to the intersection is, for example, within 100 [mm].

As described above, according to the second embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
The irradiation range of the light emitted from the driver-side LED 24 covers not only the driver but also the passenger, and the irradiation range of the light emitted from the passenger-side LED 25 covers not only the passenger but also the driver. Similarly, it is possible to reduce the size of the entire device while avoiding an increase in the size of the illumination unit for irradiating the driver and the passenger with light and an increase in the amount of heat generated.

(Other embodiments)
Although the present disclosure has been described with reference to examples, it is understood that it is not limited to such examples or structures. The present disclosure also includes various modifications and modifications within the equivalent range. In addition, various combinations and configurations, as well as other combinations and configurations including single elements, more, or less, are within the scope and spirit of this disclosure.

In the drawings, 1 and 21 are occupant imaging devices, 3 and 23 are cameras, 4 and 24 are driver-side LEDs (first lighting units), and 5 and 25 are passenger-side LEDs (second lighting units).

Claims (6)

An occupant imaging device for imaging an occupant,
a camera (3, 23) provided in the housing and capable of capturing images of both the driver and the passenger at the same time;
a first lighting unit (4, 24) provided in the housing with an optical axis facing the driver and having a half-value angle characteristic such that a part of the projected light is irradiated to the passenger;
a second lighting unit (5, 25) provided in the housing with an optical axis facing the passenger and having a half-value angle characteristic such that part of the projected light is directed to the driver; Imaging device. 2. The occupant imaging device according to claim 1, wherein the first illumination section and the second illumination section are arranged so as to sandwich the camera. The occupant imaging device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein outer rays of light emitted from each of said first lighting section and said second lighting section are parallel to an angle of view of said camera. The occupant imaging according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein an intersection point of inner rays of light emitted from each of the first illumination section and the second illumination section is located near the front surface of the camera (3). Device. The occupant imaging device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the camera has an angle of view that does not exceed 180 degrees. The occupant imaging device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the camera has an angle of view exceeding 180 degrees.

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