JPH1091899A - Road monitoring system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To execute road monitoring in a wide range without a dead angle, in details and at a low cost by integrating obstacle information based on a vehicle outside picture and a monitoring picture. SOLUTION: Each monitoring picture processor 12i (i=1 to N) is installed at a position near a monitor camera 11i (i=1 to N) to process a monitoring picture to send the result to an information integrating device 170. Each on- vehicle communication equipment 15ja (j=1 to M) transmits the vehicle outside picture from a corresponding on-vehicle camera 13j (j=1 to M) and information on its own vehicle position from a corresponding vehicle position detector 14j (j=1 to M) to a corresponding road side communication equipment 15j (j=1 to M). Each vehicle outside picture processor 16j (j=1 to M) is installed at a position near a corresponding road side communication equipment 15jb to process a vehicle outside picture to send the result to the device 170. The device 170 specifies the position of a dropping object, a stopping vehicle, etc., on a road from processing results sent from all the devices and outputs the passing fault information to an information output device 180.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention detects an obstacle on the road such as a stationary vehicle or a falling object on the road based on an image taken by a video camera installed on the side of the road or a video camera mounted on the vehicle. The present invention also relates to a road monitoring system that communicates its existence to a road manager or a driver of a passing vehicle.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The literature "Image Engineering Laboratory," ITS
All, published by Nihon Keizai Shimbun Co., Ltd.] As a conventional road surveillance system using images, CCTV that installs multiple ITV cameras etc. in dangerous places such as in tunnels and centrally monitors those images at a control center etc. There are systems and the like.

For example, in the systems described on pages 92 to 97 of the above document, abnormalities such as accidents are detected by processing images captured by a plurality of monitoring cameras, and information is provided to a driver or a road manager. doing.

In advanced safety vehicles (ASVs) described on pages 62 to 67 of the above-mentioned document, an obstacle detection and a rear side alarm system using a vehicle-mounted camera or the like have been realized. These perform, for example, measurement of a distance between vehicles and detection of a falling object by processing an image in front,
It is intended to provide information to the driver.

[0005]

However, since the above-described surveillance system processes an image of a surveillance camera installed on the roadside or on the upper part of the road, the position of a blind spot of the surveillance camera and the monitoring range of the surveillance camera are monitored. Abnormality detection outside is impossible, and in order to eliminate this, more surveillance cameras must be installed, and there is a problem that the system becomes large-scale and costly.

In the above-described detection system mounted on an advanced safety vehicle, information is acquired using a sensor mounted on the vehicle. There is a problem that information on the position of a blind spot cannot be obtained for the vehicle. In addition, since the image processing device needs to be mounted on the vehicle, an installation space in the vehicle is required, and the cost is high. there were.

Therefore, there is a demand for a road monitoring system capable of monitoring roads in a wider area (for example, the entire road) than before, in detail without blind spots, and at low cost for car owners. .

[0008]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for processing a road image.
In a road monitoring system that detects obstacles that hinder driving, a (1) monitoring image capturing unit that is installed near a road and captures a road; and (2) a monitoring image captured by the monitoring image capturing unit detects an obstacle. Surveillance image processing means for detecting the presence of an object, (3) on-vehicle image photographing means mounted on the vehicle and photographing a road outside the vehicle, and (4) self-vehicle position detecting means mounted on the vehicle and detecting the vehicle position And (5) mounted on the vehicle,
Or, provided outside the vehicle, from the vehicle outside image by the vehicle outside image capturing means and the vehicle position information by the own vehicle position detecting means,
Outside image processing means for detecting the presence of obstacles on the road;
(6) information integration means for integrating the obstacle information detected by the surveillance image processing means and the vehicle outside image processing means, (7)
Information output means for presenting the obstacle information integrated by the information integration means.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, both the processing for the monitoring image and the processing for the image outside the vehicle are handled. Therefore, it is possible to monitor the blind spot of the monitoring image and outside the installation range of the monitoring image photographing means using the image outside the vehicle. Can also be
Obtaining the result of the road monitoring based on the monitoring image and the image outside the vehicle of another vehicle enables detection of an obstacle in a range such as a front area or a blind spot which is not visible from the image capturing means outside the vehicle.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a road monitoring system for processing a road image to detect an obstacle that hinders traveling. (1) An external vehicle mounted on a vehicle for photographing a road outside the vehicle. Image capturing means, (2) a vehicle position detecting means mounted on the vehicle and detecting the vehicle position, and (3) a vehicle external image capturing means mounted on the vehicle or provided outside the vehicle and provided by the external image capturing means. From the vehicle position information by the vehicle position detecting means, an external image processing means for detecting the presence of an obstacle on the road, and (4) an information integrating means for integrating the obstacle information detected by the plural external image processing means, (5) An information output means for presenting the obstacle information integrated by the information integration means is provided.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, it is possible to detect an obstacle with a small blind spot using the outside image of the outside image photographing means without installing the monitoring image photographing means.

[0012]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

(A) First Embodiment Hereinafter, a first embodiment of a road monitoring system according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

The road surveillance system according to the first embodiment monitors a road by a surveillance camera installed on the side of or on the road, and also transmits an image from a vehicle-mounted camera mounted on a vehicle traveling on the road via a communication unit. And monitoring the road by integrating them.

(A-1) Configuration of the First Embodiment FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of the road monitoring system of the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the arrangement of the components around the road.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a road monitoring system according to a first embodiment includes monitoring cameras 111 to 11N, monitoring image processing devices 121 to 12N, and in-vehicle cameras 131 to 13.
M, vehicle position detecting devices 141 to 14M, in-vehicle communication device 15
1a to 15Ma, roadside communication devices 151b to 15Mb, external image processing devices 161 to 16M, an information integration device 170, and an information output device 180.

As shown in FIG. 2 (only two are shown), each of the monitoring cameras 11i (i is 1 to N) is installed on the side of or on the road at a substantially predetermined interval in the direction in which the road extends. An image is taken using the road 100 as an imaging area, and an obtained captured image (hereinafter, referred to as a “monitoring image”)
To the corresponding monitoring image processing device 12i.

Each surveillance image processing device 12i is preferably installed at a position close to the corresponding surveillance camera 11i, processes surveillance images from the surveillance camera 11i, and performs road surveillance such as detection of falling objects and stopped vehicles. The result including the position information is transmitted to the information integration device 170 by wire or wirelessly.

The on-vehicle camera 13j (j is 1 to M), the vehicle position detecting device 14j and the on-vehicle communication device 15ja are mounted on the vehicle 19j as shown in FIG. 2 (only two are shown). is there.

Each of the on-vehicle cameras 13j captures an image of the outside of the vehicle 19j on which it is mounted, such as in front of or on the side of the vehicle 19j, and captures the captured image (hereinafter referred to as "outside vehicle image"). This is given to the corresponding in-vehicle communication device 15ja.

Each vehicle position detecting device 14j is, for example, a GP.
It is an S receiver, which obtains own vehicle position information and gives it to the corresponding on-vehicle communication device 15ja.

Each on-vehicle communication device 15ja transmits an outside image from the corresponding on-vehicle camera 13j and own vehicle position information from the corresponding vehicle position detecting device 14j to the corresponding roadside communication device 15jb to which a connection has been established. What to send. An existing method can be applied as a method for establishing a connection between the on-vehicle communication device 15ja and the roadside communication device 15jb.

As shown in FIG. 2 (only two are shown), each of the roadside communication devices 15jb is installed on the side of the road or at an upper portion thereof at a substantially predetermined interval in the direction of extension of the road. This is to provide the vehicle exterior image and vehicle position information from the established vehicle-mounted communication device 15ja to the corresponding vehicle exterior image processing device 16j.

Each of the outside image processing devices 16j is preferably installed at a position close to the corresponding roadside communication device 15jb, processes the outside image, performs road monitoring such as detection of a falling object or a stopped vehicle, and obtains its position information. The result is transmitted to the information integration device 170 by wire or wirelessly.

The information integration device 170 includes all the monitoring image processing devices 121 to 12N and all the outside image processing devices 161.
The position and the size of a falling object or a stopped vehicle on the road are specified from the processing results sent from ~ 16M, and the traffic obstacle information is output to the information output device 180.

The information output device 180 is a device that presents the obtained traffic obstruction information to a driver, a road manager, or the like on a display provided on a road or a display panel provided at a monitoring center, for example. It is.

In the first embodiment, communication means capable of constantly transmitting a captured image is assumed. For example, image transmission using UHF radio waves corresponds to this.

(A-2) Operation of the First Embodiment A monitoring image obtained by each monitoring camera 11i is given to a corresponding monitoring image processing device 12i, processed by the monitoring image processing device 12i, and dropped. An object or a stopped vehicle is detected, and if those obstacles exist,
The monitoring result including the position information is transmitted to the information integrating device 170.

The image outside the vehicle obtained by each on-vehicle camera 13j is given to the corresponding on-vehicle communication device 15ja. The own vehicle position information (vehicle position information) obtained by each vehicle position detecting device 14j is also It is provided to the corresponding in-vehicle communication device 15ja. Then, the outside image and the vehicle position information are stored in the vehicle-mounted communication device 15ja and the roadside communication device 15ja.
It is provided to the outside image processing device 16j via jb.
A monitoring result indicating the presence of a falling object or a stopped vehicle, which is obtained by processing the given vehicle outside image by the vehicle outside image processing device 16j, is provided to the information integration device 170.

In the information integration device 170, based on the monitoring results sent from all the monitoring image processing devices 121 to 12N and all the outside image processing devices 161 to 16M, the position of a falling object, a stopped vehicle, or the like on the road is determined. Specify the size, output the traffic obstacle information to the information output device 180,
The information output device 180 presents the obtained traffic obstruction information to a driver, a road manager, and the like.

Hereinafter, the main system components, that is, the surveillance image processing device 12i and the outside image processing device 16
j and the operation of the information integration device 170 will be described in order.

FIG. 3 shows the monitoring image processing device 12i (121
12 to 12N) are flowcharts illustrating the processing contents.

The surveillance image processing device 12i first takes in a surveillance image from the corresponding surveillance camera 11i (step 3).
01), an obstacle detection operation is performed from the monitoring image (step 302), and the presence or absence of an obstacle is determined (step 303). For this obstacle detection, various methods such as the sudden event detection device described in the above-mentioned literature can be used.

If no obstacle is detected, the process immediately proceeds to the next monitoring image acquisition processing step 301. If an obstacle is detected, information on its position, shape, and size is transmitted to the information integrating device 170. (Step 30)
4) The process proceeds to the next monitoring image acquisition processing step 301. Here, the information on the obstacle is stored in the monitoring camera 11i.
Is located at the fixed position, it can be obtained from the information of its installation position and orientation and the position of the obstacle in the monitoring image.

FIG. 4 shows an image processing device 16j (161) outside the vehicle.
It is a flowchart which shows the processing content of -163).

The external image processing device 16j firstly outputs the external image from the vehicle-mounted camera 13j and the vehicle position detecting device 14j.
The vehicle position information detected by j is captured via the on-vehicle and roadside communication devices 15ja and 15jb (step 401), an obstacle detection operation is performed from the image outside the vehicle (step 402), and the presence or absence of an obstacle is determined. (Step 403). For this obstacle detection, a method adopted in the inter-vehicle distance warning system or the accident avoidance automatic operation system described in the above-mentioned literature can be used.

If no obstacle is detected, the next outside image and own vehicle position information acquisition processing step 401 is immediately performed.
When an obstacle is detected, the position and shape information is transmitted to the information integration device 170 (step 404), and the process proceeds to the next outside image and own vehicle position information acquisition processing step 401. I do. Here, the information on the obstacles on the road is the vehicle position information, and the position and orientation of the vehicle with respect to the obtained lane by the white line recognition method adopted by the lane departure warning system described in the above-mentioned document. It can be obtained from the information and the image of the obstacle in the image.

FIG. 5 shows all the monitoring image processing apparatuses 121 to 121.
It is a flowchart which shows the processing content of the information integration apparatus 170 to which the monitoring results from 12N and all the outside image processing apparatuses 161 to 16M are given.

First, the information integration device 170 performs an operation of receiving information on the position and shape of the obstacle output from the monitoring image processing device 12i and the outside image processing device 16j (step 501). Is determined (step 502). If no reception has been given, the receiving operation is repeated.

When the obstacle information is received, it is checked whether or not the obstacle is already registered in the built-in obstacle position database 504 by using the information on the position among the information (steps 503 and 505). As a result, if it is determined that the information has been registered, the process returns to the obstacle information receiving operation. On the other hand, if it is determined that the obstacle information has not been registered, the obstacle information is output to the information output device 180 (step 506), and the position and size of the obstacle are stored in the obstacle position database. After registration in 504 (step 507), the process returns to the obstacle information receiving operation.

If a non-obstacle such as a bridge joint or a road surface is in the field of view of the monitoring camera 11i or the outside camera 21j, and each of the image processing devices 12i and 16j erroneously recognizes them as an obstacle. The contents are registered in the obstacle position database 504 in advance. Thus, it is possible to prevent such information from being output as a new obstacle.

(A-3) Effects of the First Embodiment As described above, according to the first embodiment, since both the processing for the monitoring image and the processing for the outside image are handled, the outside image is utilized. Road surveillance can be performed for blind spots in surveillance images and outside of the installation range of surveillance cameras.Furthermore, by receiving the results of road surveillance using surveillance images and images outside the vehicle of other vehicles, forward and blind spots that cannot be seen from onboard cameras Can be detected.

Further, since all the image processing is performed by the device installed on the road side, a road monitoring system with a low burden on the car owner can be realized. Considering that vehicles equipped with on-vehicle cameras will increase, the installation density of surveillance cameras can be reduced to some extent.

(B) Second Embodiment Next, a second embodiment of the road monitoring system according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

In the second embodiment, a shooting command is issued to a passing vehicle when necessary, and a more reliable detection of an obstacle is performed using the image outside the vehicle at that time.
The point that the in-vehicle camera captures an image only at the time of a command is significantly different from the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of the road monitoring system according to the second embodiment. The same reference numerals as in FIG. 1 according to the first embodiment denote the same or corresponding parts. ing. The arrangement of the components of the second embodiment around the road is the same as that of FIG. 2 described above except that the photographing instruction device 200 is provided close to the information integration device 170. Is omitted.

As is clear from the comparison between FIG. 6 and FIG.
In the second embodiment, in addition to the configuration of the first embodiment, a photographing command device 200 is provided, and the vehicle-mounted camera 13j, the vehicle-mounted communication device 15ja, and the roadside communication device 1
As 5jb, one that can support the bidirectional communication function is applied. In addition, the function of the information integration device 170 is slightly different from that of the first embodiment in connection with the provision of the imaging command device 200.

The information integration device 170 according to the second embodiment
In addition to the functions described in the first embodiment, based on information on an obstacle detected by each of the image processing devices 12i and 16j, the image definition for the obstacle is evaluated,
It also has a function of giving the value to the photographing instruction device 200 together with the information on the obstacle and the own vehicle position information.

The photographing instruction device 200 is provided with the information integrating device 17.
Based on the information given from 0 and the own vehicle position information of each vehicle, a shooting command signal is issued to a vehicle passing near an obstacle detected from a non-fine image, and a more precise image of the target obstacle is obtained. Is to be obtained. That is, the image outside the vehicle is not always transmitted as in the first embodiment, but only the captured image outside the vehicle is transmitted when the image capturing instruction device 200 instructs the image capturing.

The photographing command signal output from the photographing command device 200 is transmitted to the roadside communication device 15 near the obstacle.
jb and the in-vehicle communication device 15ja, which are provided to the in-vehicle camera 13j of the vehicle passing near the obstacle. Here, any one of the roadside communication devices 15
The transmission of the photographing command signal to jb is performed by the common line method.

Further, since the outside image is not always photographed, a communication line such as an automobile telephone line or a mobile telephone line is used as a communication means between the vehicle-mounted communication device 15ja and the roadside communication device 15jb. Is enough.

Here, the case where the photographing instruction device 200 issues a photographing instruction signal to a passing vehicle is as follows. For example, since there is an obstacle at a position relatively distant from the surveillance camera 11i or on a different driving lane than the lane on which the vehicle equipped with the on-board camera 13j is running, the size and shape of the obstacle are determined. This is a case where a sufficient resolution cannot be obtained.

The entire operation of the road monitoring system according to the second embodiment is substantially the same as that of the first embodiment except that a photographing command is issued. The operation of the information integration device 170 having the function of determining whether or not to perform the operation will be described.

Here, FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the processing contents of the information integration device 170 of the second embodiment.
Steps that are the same as and correspond to those in FIG. 5 according to the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals.

The information integrating device 170 first receives the information on the position and shape of the obstacle output from the monitoring image processing device 12i and the outside image processing device 16j (step 501), and determines whether or not the information has been given. Is determined (step 502). If no reception has been given, the receiving operation is repeated. When you receive obstacle information,
Using the information on the position among the information, it is checked whether or not the obstacle is already registered in the built-in obstacle position database 504 (steps 503 and 505).
As a result, if it is determined that the obstacle information has not been registered,
The obstacle information is output to the information output device 180 (step 506), and the position and size of the obstacle are registered in the obstacle position database 504 (step 507).

The above processing is the same as that of the first embodiment, but differs from the first embodiment in that the following processing is performed.

Even if the received obstacle information has already been registered in the obstacle position database 504, the information integrating apparatus 170 can provide more detailed information such as the size and shape of the same obstacle in the information obtained this time. Since there are many cases, the contents of the obstacle position database 504 are updated (step 508). That is, when information based on an image captured from a position closer to an obstacle is obtained, the information is handled as more detailed information, and the database 504 is updated with the content.

As described above, information on the same obstacle in the obstacle position database 504 is updated (step 5).
08), the information of the new obstacle is newly registered in the obstacle position database 504 (see step 507), and the information integrating device 170 then evaluates the resolution of the image for which the obstacle detection has been performed (see FIG. After obtaining the image definition (step 509), the evaluation value is compared with a threshold value (step 510), and it is determined whether or not the resolution of the image detected by the obstacle detection is sufficient.

The image definition is defined, for example, by the ratio of the focal length of the surveillance camera 11i and the vehicle-mounted camera 16j to the distance from the video camera to the object. Here, as for the monitoring camera 11i, since the position and the orientation of the monitoring camera 11i are known, the distance from the monitoring camera 11i to the object can be almost grasped by the position of the obstacle in the image. As for the vehicle-mounted camera 16j, for example, if a video camera of a stereo image system is used, the vehicle-mounted camera 16j can be used.
If the distance from j to the object can be grasped, or if the angle of the optical axis of the in-vehicle camera 16j with respect to the road surface is known, the distance to the object can be obtained by grasping the shape of the road surface in advance.

If the resolution of the current captured image is sufficient,
Returning to the operation of receiving the next obstacle information, if the resolution of the current captured image is not sufficient, the position information of the obstacle to be re-photographed is transmitted to the photographing instruction device 200 to instruct re-photographing (step 511). ), And return to the next obstacle information receiving operation.

At this time, the photographing instruction device 200 determines the received position of the target obstacle and the own vehicle position information of each vehicle based on the received position.
The vehicle closest to the target obstacle is determined, and an imaging command signal is issued to the vehicle. The on-board communication device 15j
As a, when a function such as a mobile phone or a car phone is used, the vehicle closest to the target obstacle may be determined using the location registration function of the phone.

As described above, also in the second embodiment, since both the processing on the monitoring image and the processing on the outside image are handled, the outside image is used to control the blind spot of the monitoring image and the road outside the installation area of the monitoring camera. Monitoring can be performed, and by receiving the result of road monitoring based on the monitoring image or the image outside the vehicle of another vehicle, it is possible to detect an obstacle in a range such as a front area or a blind spot that cannot be seen from the onboard camera. In addition, since all image processing is performed by a device installed on the roadside, a road monitoring system with a low cost burden on the car owner can be realized. Considering the fact that vehicles equipped with on-vehicle cameras will increase, the installation density of surveillance cameras can be reduced to some extent.

Further, according to the second embodiment, a finer image can be obtained from a vehicle passing nearby in the detection of a distant obstacle such that a sufficient resolution cannot be obtained. Therefore, more accurate information on obstacles can be obtained, and the reliability of road monitoring can be improved. Further, since the resolution of the surveillance camera may be low, the installation density of the surveillance camera can be reduced, and the cost can be reduced. Furthermore, since transmission of the image outside the vehicle is limited only when the photographing command signal is issued, inexpensive communication means such as a mobile phone can be used, and the cost burden on the vehicle owner can be further reduced.

(C) Third Embodiment Next, a third embodiment of the road monitoring system according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

In the third embodiment, a marker is installed at an appropriate position on a road without installing a surveillance camera or a surveillance image processing device on the road side, and an image of a vehicle passing through the marker at the time of passing is obtained. The present invention relates to a road monitoring system that receives and performs processing.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of the road monitoring system according to the third embodiment. The same reference numerals as in FIG. 6 according to the second embodiment denote the same or corresponding parts. ing. FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing the arrangement of the components of the third embodiment in the vicinity of the road, where the same reference numerals are given to the same and corresponding parts as those in FIG. 8 and the above-described respective drawings. ing.

As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, and as described above, the road monitoring system of the third embodiment does not include a monitoring camera and a monitoring image processing device. The components in the second embodiment other than these are also provided in the road monitoring system of the third embodiment. The functions of these components are almost the same as those of the second embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted.

In the case of the third embodiment, the markers 221 to 22L and the marker detection sensors 211 to 21M
Is provided.

As shown in FIG. 9 (only one marker is shown in FIG. 9), the markers 22k (k is 1 to L) are located at substantially equal intervals in the direction of extension of the road, on the upper side of the road 100, on the roadside, or on the road surface. And indicates position information on the road 100.

As shown in FIG. 9, each marker detection sensor 21j is mounted on the vehicle 19j, and detects the presence of the marker 22k. When detecting the marker 22k, the marker detection sensor 21j supplies a marker detection signal to the corresponding in-vehicle camera 13j to start photographing.

The marker 22 installed on the road 100
Various types of k can be used, for example, a line drawn on a road surface, a radio wave from a radio transmitter installed on the road side, and the like. At this time, an appropriate marker detection sensor 21j mounted on the vehicle 19j is used depending on the type of marker to be used. For example, when a line drawn in a specific color on a road surface is used as the marker 22k, the marker detection sensor 21j captures an image of a device that performs color image processing that extracts only that color portion and a road surface directly below the vehicle. What is necessary is just to comprise an image sensor or a video camera with a small number of pixels. In the case of the marker detection sensor 22k configured as described above, a marker detection signal is transmitted when a marker color area having a size equal to or larger than the threshold is detected.

In-vehicle camera 1 according to the third embodiment
3j is for taking a picture when a marker detection signal is given and when giving a shooting command signal output from the shooting command device 200, and sending the outside image to the corresponding in-vehicle communication device 15ja. .

The information integrating device 17 in the third embodiment
0 has the same function as that of the second embodiment except that the processing results from the external image processing devices 161 to 16M are used (see FIG. 7).

As described above, in the road monitoring system according to the third embodiment, the marker 22k is installed at an appropriate position on the road instead of the monitoring camera installed on the roadside or the like.
Basically, an image outside the vehicle at the time of passing from the vehicle that has passed through the marker 22k is used for monitoring.
When the position and shape information of the obstacle information from the image outside the vehicle at the time of passing k is inaccurate, the vehicle in the vicinity of the obstacle is instructed to take a picture to obtain highly accurate obstacle information. Things. Although the second embodiment differs from the second embodiment in that the photographing timing of the on-vehicle camera 13j and the monitoring camera are not provided, the basic processing is almost the same, and a description thereof will be omitted.

According to the third embodiment, it is possible to detect an obstacle by fixed-point observation using an outside image of a vehicle-mounted camera without installing a monitoring camera on the roadside. This is effective, for example, for monitoring an obstacle or the like on a road on a terrain where a surveillance camera cannot be installed or a road section where a surveillance camera is not installed. Further, since the image outside the vehicle is the center of monitoring, the blind spot is reduced.

Further, since only the markers need to be set on the road, the cost of the system can be reduced because the monitoring camera and the monitoring image processing device are not required.

(D) Other Embodiments In the first and second embodiments, the surveillance camera is a fixed one. However, a surveillance camera that can move linearly or pivotally may be applied. good. In this case, it is necessary to provide the position information and the angle information to the monitoring image processing apparatus and transmit the information to the information integration apparatus.

In each of the above embodiments, the image processing device outside the vehicle is provided outside the vehicle. However, the image processing device outside the vehicle is provided inside the vehicle so that the result of monitoring by the image processing device outside the vehicle is transmitted outside the vehicle. Is also good.

Further, in the first and second embodiments, the monitoring camera and the monitoring image processing device correspond one-to-one, but one monitoring image processing device has a predetermined number of monitoring devices. The monitoring image from the camera may be processed in a time-division manner. Similarly, one outside image processing apparatus may process outside images from a predetermined number of vehicle-mounted cameras in a time-division manner.

Further, the technical idea that the in-vehicle camera takes a picture when the marker according to the third embodiment is detected may be incorporated in the configuration of the second embodiment. In this case, for example, it is also effective for monitoring an obstacle or the like in a road section where a sufficient resolution cannot be obtained because the installation interval of the monitoring cameras is too wide.

Further, in the third embodiment, an example in which the photographing timing by the vehicle-mounted camera is limited has been described.
You may make it always photograph.

Further, in the second and third embodiments, the transmission of the vehicle position information when transmitting the image outside the vehicle has been described, but the vehicle position information is always transmitted regardless of the transmission of the image outside the vehicle. You may make it transmit. By inputting such constantly transmitted vehicle position information to the photographing instruction device 200, it is possible to easily determine a vehicle near an obstacle.

Further, in the second and third embodiments, an example in which a photographing command is issued to a vehicle near an obstacle has been described. It is also possible to issue a photographing command to a vehicle traveling in the section. It is desirable to appropriately adjust this photographing command according to the necessity, such as not to issue it for a while if photographed as an image outside the vehicle.

The road surveillance system according to the present invention can be used, for example, in a place near a curve or a tunnel on a highway or a general road, where it is difficult for the driver to recognize the presence of a falling object, a stopped vehicle, or other obstacles to road traffic. It is suitable for application. In addition, the present invention is suitable for use in a place where a delay in recognition of an obstacle, which is caused by a decrease in driver's consciousness due to fatigue or aside, is likely to occur. Further, the present invention is suitably applied to a case where a road manager automatically monitors a road over a wide section.

[0084]

As described above, according to the road monitoring system of the present invention, the obstacle information based on the outside image from the outside image photographing means mounted on the vehicle traveling on the road is integrated.
Alternatively, the road monitoring is performed by integrating the obstacle information based on the outside image from the outside image photographing means and the obstacle information based on the monitoring image from the surveillance image photographing means. A road monitoring system that performs detailed and low-cost operations can be realized.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a road monitoring system according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an arrangement of various elements according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a processing flowchart of the monitoring image processing apparatus according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a processing flowchart of the image processing apparatus outside the vehicle according to the first embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a processing flowchart of the information integration device of the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a road monitoring system according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a processing flowchart of the information integration device of the second embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a road monitoring system according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing an arrangement of various elements according to the third embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

111 to 11N: surveillance camera, 121 to 12N: surveillance image processing device, 131 to 13M: in-vehicle camera, 141 to 1
4M: Vehicle position detecting device, 151a to 15Ma: In-vehicle communication device, 151b to 15Mb: Roadside communication device, 161 to 16
M: image processing device outside the vehicle, 170: information integration device, 180
... Information output device, 191, 192 ... Vehicle, 200 ... Photographing command device, 211-21M ... Marker detection sensor, 221
... markers.

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Akihiro Fujii Oki Electric Industry Co., Ltd. 1-7-12 Toranomon, Minato-ku, Tokyo

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A road monitoring system that detects an obstacle that hinders traveling by processing a road image, comprising: a monitoring image capturing unit that is installed near a road and captures a road; Surveillance image processing means for detecting the presence of an obstacle from a captured surveillance image; out-of-vehicle image photographing means mounted on a vehicle to photograph a road outside the vehicle; and vehicle position detection mounted on the vehicle and detecting the vehicle position Means, mounted on the vehicle or provided outside the vehicle, and detects the presence of an obstacle on the road from the outside image by the outside image photographing means and the vehicle position information by the own vehicle position detecting means. Means, information integrating means for integrating obstacle information detected by the monitoring image processing means and the vehicle exterior image processing means, and information integrating means by the information integrating means. Surveillance system, comprising an information output means for presenting harm product information. 2. A road monitoring system for processing a road image to detect an obstacle that obstructs driving, comprising: a vehicle exterior image capturing means mounted on a vehicle for capturing a road outside the vehicle; Self-vehicle position detecting means for detecting the vehicle position; mounted on the vehicle or provided outside the vehicle; External image processing means for detecting the presence of an object; information integrating means for integrating obstacle information detected by the plurality of external image processing means; and information output for presenting the obstacle information integrated by the information integrating means. And a road monitoring system. 3. The information integration means determines whether or not the given obstacle information is a new obstacle based on a database unit storing the obstacle information and the contents stored in the database unit. The road monitoring system according to claim 1, further comprising: a determination unit configured to update and store the database unit. 4. The road surveillance system according to claim 1, wherein said outside image photographing means is adapted to perform photographing when a photographing command signal is given. 5. When a re-photographing operation near a certain obstacle position is started, a photographing command means for determining a vehicle traveling near the obstacle position and issuing a photographing command signal for the vehicle; And a photographing command transmitting means for transmitting the photographing command signal from the vehicle to the outside image photographing means of the vehicle. The information integration device obtains the obstacle information based on the inputted obstacle information. The road monitoring system according to claim 4, further comprising a re-photographing activation unit that evaluates the definition of the image portion at the time of the evaluation and, when the evaluation is low, activates re-imaging near the obstacle position. 6. A marker provided near a road, and a marker mounted on a vehicle, for detecting the presence of the marker and providing a marker detection signal as a photographing command signal to the outside image photographing means mounted on the same vehicle. The road monitoring system according to claim 4, further comprising a detection unit.