KR102125738B1 - A parking assisting system - Google Patents

Abstract

A parking assistance system comprising a camera unit for photographing an image of a front or rear of a vehicle equipped with a wide-angle lens and a display unit for displaying an image of the front or rear of the vehicle photographed by the camera unit, wherein the steering angle of the vehicle And an image area selection unit for receiving steering angle information of the steering wheel of the vehicle from a sensor and selecting a display area for display on the display unit among original images photographed by the camera unit according to the steering angle information. A parking assistance system is disclosed.

Description

Parking assistance system {A PARKING ASSISTING SYSTEM}

The present invention relates to a parking assist system, and more particularly, to a parking assist system capable of assisting parking by selecting a part of an original image photographed by the camera unit according to the operation of a steering wheel of a vehicle.

In recent years, devices for consumer convenience as well as consumer satisfaction for the power performance of automobiles have been widely used. As such an example, the prevalence of front/rear cameras for parking assistance and integrated display devices that can grasp the state of a vehicle at a glance are becoming more common. The driver can see the front/rear cameras and distance measuring sensors of the vehicle in front or rear parking, and people (eg, pedestrians, etc.) or objects (hereinafter referred to as “obstacles”) around the vehicle through the display device. , You can know the distance to the obstacle.

Conventionally, in order to recognize such obstacles during parking, limited information is provided, which simply displays a front or rear scene or simply displays the proximity of the obstacle with a warning alarm sound.

However, although the main purpose of the front or rear camera of the vehicle is to secure the field of view of the front or rear of the vehicle, a problem occurs that a blind spot occurs according to the angle of view of the lens of the camera.

Accordingly, there is a need for a system for parking assistance that is more detailed and convenient than the conventional technology and can increase user satisfaction.

In order to solve this problem, the present invention can provide a driver with a necessary display area according to the manipulation of the steering wheel among the original images captured by the camera unit when the driver operates the steering wheel of the vehicle.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a parking including a camera unit for photographing an image of a front or rear of a vehicle and a display unit displaying an image of the front or rear of the vehicle photographed by the camera unit with a wide-angle lens An auxiliary system is disclosed, receiving steering angle information of the steering wheel of the vehicle from the steering angle sensor of the vehicle, and selecting a display area for display on the display unit from the original images photographed by the camera unit according to the steering angle information It may include an image area selection unit for.

The image area selection unit may select a display area of the second size for display on the display unit from the original image of the first size. Here, the first size may be larger than the second size.

The image area selector may arrange a display area of a second size in the center of the original image of the first size, and move the display area in the left and right directions within the original image according to the steering angle information.

The image area selection unit may determine a direction in which the vehicle intends to move based on the steering angle information, and move the display area in the left and right directions within the original image according to the determined direction.

The image area selection unit may further move the display area in the vertical direction.

The image area selection unit may move the display area in the vertical direction according to the distance between the vehicle and the parking target area.

The parking assistance system according to an embodiment of the present invention acquires an original image in front or rear of a vehicle with a blind spot removed by using a camera unit equipped with a wide-angle lens and a mega-class image sensor, and assists parking among the acquired original images By displaying the necessary parts on the display unit, it is possible to provide the driver with a front or rear image of a vehicle with a blind spot removed.

차 보조 시스템에 비하여, 카메라 회전부 등을 구성하는 모터나 모터 제어를 위한 콘트롤러 등이 필요없으므로 제품 사이즈 및 생산 단가를 줄일 수 있는 장점이 있다.On the other hand, the camera is equipped with a rotating part, and the front or rear camera is designed to adjust the shooting angle

Compared to the car auxiliary system, there is no advantage in reducing the product size and the production cost since a motor constituting a camera rotation unit or a controller for controlling the motor is not required.

1 is a block diagram of a parking assistance system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a block diagram of a camera unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 generally shows a blind spot of a vehicle according to photographing of a camera unit mounted on the vehicle.
4 illustrates an example of determining a display area in an original image according to an embodiment of the present invention.
5 is a flowchart of the operation of the parking assistance system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The terms or words used in the specification and claims should not be interpreted as being limited to ordinary or dictionary meanings, but should be interpreted as meanings and concepts consistent with the technical spirit of the present invention. Therefore, the embodiments shown in the embodiments and the drawings described in this specification are only the most preferred embodiments of the present invention and do not cover all of the technical spirit of the present invention, and thus can replace them at the time of application. It should be understood that there may be equivalents and variations.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a block diagram of a parking assistance system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The parking assistance system 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention selects a camera unit 110 for photographing an area in front of or behind a vehicle, and a portion of an original image photographed by the camera unit to be provided to the display unit Image area selection unit 120 for, the display unit 130 for displaying the image taken by the camera unit, in particular, the image selected by the image area selection unit, a steering angle sensor for measuring the steering angle of the steering wheel of the vehicle ( 140), and a controller 150 for controlling operations of the camera unit, the image area selection unit, the display unit, and the steering angle sensor.

The camera unit 110 may photograph an image of the front or rear of the vehicle, and may be installed in at least one of the front or rear of the vehicle. The camera unit 110 may include a general vehicle camera. Further, the camera unit 110 may be an infrared camera for securing a field of view at night. Due to the brightness of the lens of the camera unit 110, an image captured by a general camera may not provide sufficient information for parking assistance on a cloudy day or at night when sufficient light is not provided.

The camera unit 110 may photograph a scene or a parking area in front or rear of the vehicle and provide it to the display unit 130 in the vehicle.

The image area selection unit 120 may select a portion of the original image photographed by the camera unit and provide it to the display unit. For example, the camera unit 110 according to an embodiment of the present invention is equipped with a wide-angle lens (not shown) and a mega-class image sensor, so as to obtain a front or rear image of a vehicle with a widest angle of view. The image obtained by the camera unit 110 in this way is referred to as a “original image” in this specification. By using the original image with the widest angle of view as possible, a blind spot in the front or rear of the vehicle may be photographed and provided to the driver.

Meanwhile, in order to display the original image on the display unit 130 without distortion, the resolution of the display unit 130 must also be the same as that of the original image. Therefore, a method of providing the display unit 130 at the resolution level of the original image is described. It should not be covered in the specification.

Since the resolution of the original image is greater than that of the display 130 (for example, the original image has a resolution of 1280*720, the display portion has a resolution of 640*480), the image area selection unit 120 displays the original image from the display unit ( In 130), a portion or an area to be displayed (hereinafter referred to as "display area") can be selected.

The image area selector 120 may use steering angle information of the steering angle sensor 140 to determine the display area. For example, the initial position of the display area may correspond to the center of the original image. Then, if it is determined that the driver needs the original image on the right side of the display area according to the steering angle information, the display area is moved to a right ratio according to the steering angle information to display the completed display area. (130).

For example, when the driver turns the steering wheel counterclockwise during reverse parking, the steering angle sensor 140 may provide steering angle information to the controller 150 to determine the driver's intention to move the vehicle to the rear right. , Therefore, the image of the rear right of the vehicle is required among the original images, and the case of operating the steering wheel clockwise is the opposite. By grasping the relationship between the steering angle information and the movement of the display area, the steering area information may be used to determine the display area.

The above-described operation of the image area selection unit 120 will be described in more detail with reference to FIG. 4.

The display unit 130 is a type of monitor mounted in the vehicle and may display the state of the vehicle or driving information. The display 130 may operate in conjunction with a navigation or audio system. In addition, the display unit 130 may include a touch panel and recognize a touch input of a driver or a user. The display unit 130 may display data or information obtained from the camera unit 110, the image area selection unit 120, and the steering angle sensor 140 described above.

The steering angle sensor 140 is a sensor for sensing the steering angle of the steering wheel of the vehicle, and may sense the steering angle of the steering wheel and provide it to the controller 150. The control unit 150 may display the steering angle of the provided steering wheel on the display unit 130. Meanwhile, the control unit 150 may combine the steering angle with the parking assist indicator to display the driving trajectory of the vehicle on the display 130.

The control unit 150 may receive data or information from the camera unit 110, the image area selection unit 120, the display unit 130, and the steering angle sensor 140 described above. The control unit 150 may process the provided data or information and display it on the display unit 130.

The control unit 150 allows the display unit 130 to display a front or rear image captured or acquired by the camera unit 110. The acquired front or rear image may include a parking target area that the vehicle intends to park. The parking target area is an area on the bottom of the parking area, which is generally white in a rectangular shape, and may not have a separate color mark.

The controller 150 may display a parking assist indicator together with or overlapping the parking target area of the photographed or acquired front or rear image. The parking assist indicator is a virtual indication of the path or distance from the vehicle to the parking target area. This corresponds to data generated by the control unit, and the parking assist indicator may be changed in size, number, shape or shape depending on the distance to the parking target area or the distance to the obstacle.

In addition, a distance measuring sensor (not shown) may be provided in the system 100. The distance measuring sensor may be installed in at least one of the front or rear of the vehicle, and generally mounted on the bumper of the vehicle, and measure the distance to the obstacle. In general, a plurality of the distance measuring sensors may be provided. The distance information measured by the distance measuring sensor is provided to the control unit 150, so that the control unit 150 can properly process the distance information and display it on the display unit 130.

2 is a block diagram of the camera unit 110 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The camera unit 110 includes an image sensor 110-1 for acquiring an image in front or rear of a vehicle, a power unit 110-3 for outputting variable sequence power to the image sensor, and the power unit It may include a microcontroller unit (MCU) 110-2 for outputting a sequence signal for controlling the variable sequence, outputting a reset signal to the image sensor, and receiving an image from the image sensor. have.

The image sensor 110-1 may acquire an image in front of or behind a vehicle when parking. The image sensor 110-1 is controlled by the MCU 110-2 and may receive a sequence voltage from the power supply unit 110-3.

The image obtained through the image sensor 110-1 may be combined with or synthesized with information related to the operation of the vehicle, such as a parking area display line, a parking target area, a warning phrase, etc., and displayed on the display unit.

The power supply unit 110-3 may control a sequence of power input to the image sensor 110-1. For example, the power supply unit 110-3 receives information about the sequence (referred to herein as “sequence data”) from the MCU 110-2, and uses the sequence data to image sensor 110-1. By varying the sequence of power input to, the variable sequence power can be output to the image sensor 110-1.

The MCU 110-2 may control the overall operation of the camera unit 110 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The MCU 110-2 may receive an image obtained from the image sensor 110-1 and process it in an appropriate format.

In addition, the MCU 110-2 may control the image sensor 110-1 to operate normally. The MCU 110-2 may determine that the image sensor 110-1 is abnormal when there is no signal output from the image sensor 110-1 or there is an error in the output signal. The MCU 110-2 may output the sequence data so that the power supply unit 110-3 outputs a variable sequence power source.

In addition, the camera unit 110 may further include a lens (not shown). Here, the lens is preferably a wide-angle lens with a wide angle of view, and a maximum angle of view of about 180 degrees. If the lens is a wide-angle lens, the original image acquired by the camera unit 110 may include a blind spot in front of or behind the vehicle.

3 illustrates a blind spot of a vehicle according to photography of a camera unit mounted in a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention. The angle of view of the lens of the camera unit 110 of the vehicle 200 may be determined according to its characteristics. For example, in general, the angle of view of the lens of the camera module mounted on a vehicle is about 127 degrees. Therefore, the photographing range of this camera module is about 127° around the camera module (or its lens), and is indicated by A in FIG. 2. In this specification, A is referred to as a "shooting range".

In addition, the remaining area of about 53° excluding the photographable range is indicated by B in FIG. 2. This area is referred to as a "non-shooting range", and this area is the blind spot described above. In FIG. 2, since it is assumed that the camera module is located at the center, the non-photographable range exists as about 26.5 degrees on the left and right sides.

A blind spot or an incapable range of shooting that the camera unit of the parking assistance system cannot shoot exists in an area close to the vehicle. The farther away from the vehicle, the blind spot or incapable of shooting range disappears. In this situation, if the driver attempts to park, the parking may proceed without being aware of an obstacle that is actually present in the shooting blind spot or the shooting impossible range, which may cause an accident due to contact with the obstacle.

Therefore, the parking assistance system according to an embodiment of the present invention provides a means to photograph the blind spot or the incapable shooting range in order to eliminate the possibility of causing such an accident.

For example, the camera unit 110 of the parking assist system according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a wide-angle lens. As mentioned above, the lens angle of view of a camera module mounted on a vehicle is generally about 127 degrees, but if a wide-angle lens is used, it can acquire an image in the entire range of the front or rear of the vehicle, that is, about 180 degrees. . Therefore, when a wide-angle lens is used for the camera unit 110 of the parking assistance system, blind spots generated during parking can be removed.

However, even if an original image is obtained by simply removing a non-shooting range by simply providing a wide-angle lens in the camera unit 110, it is not useful for parking assistance unless a display unit 130 capable of displaying it is prepared. Therefore, for example, if the resolution of the original image is 1280*720 (pixels), in order to display it without distortion, the resolution of the display 130 should also be 1280*720 (pixels). However, at this point, if the resolution of the display unit 130 mounted in the vehicle becomes 1280*720 (pixels), the production cost will increase significantly.

In addition, the display unit having a resolution of 1280*720 (pixels) is often referred to as a wide display unit, and it may not be easy to install it due to limited space in the vehicle.

Therefore, in one embodiment of the present invention, without changing the conditions or performance of the display unit 130, the lens and image sensor of the camera unit 110 can be replaced to provide the driver with a blind spot image of the vehicle during parking. I would like to suggest a solution.

Briefly, an embodiment of the present invention acquires an original image having a widest possible field of view using the camera unit 110, and then selects only a required area from the original image and displays it on the display unit 130 for parking. An image of a blind spot of a city vehicle can be provided to a driver. This process is described in more detail in FIG. 4.

4 illustrates an example of determining the display area D in the original image 400 according to an embodiment of the present invention. 4A shows that the display area D is in the initial position. 4B and 4C show a state in which the display area D is moved left and right, respectively. On the other hand, since the display area D corresponds to a screen displayed by the display unit 130, there will be no problem even if it is regarded as a display screen of the display unit 130. On the other hand, it can be seen that the size of the original image 400 is larger than the display area D in FIGS. 4A to 4C. In addition, in FIG. 4A to FIG. 4C, the height of the original image 400 is illustrated to be the same as the height of the display area D. However, the present invention is not limited to this, for the purpose of simplifying the description of the invention.

The camera unit 110 may obtain the original image 400 and provide it to the image area selection unit 120 or the control unit 150. The original image 400 may have a resolution of 1280*720, for example. Meanwhile, the display 130 may have a resolution of 640*480, for example.

The control unit 150 may receive the steering angle information from the steering angle sensor 140, determine in which direction and how much to move the display area D, and provide the moving information to the image area selection unit 120. . Meanwhile, the movement information may be directly obtained by the image area selection unit 120.

The image area selection unit 120 may move the display area D in the left and right directions according to the movement information. In order to determine the movement of the display area D, the image area selection unit 120 may arrange the display area D of the second size in the center of the original image 400 of the first size (or resolution). . Therefore, initially, the display area D may be an area of the second size in the center of the original image 400. The second size (or resolution) corresponds to the maximum resolution of the display 130 (eg, 640*480).

Then, the image area selection unit 120 may receive the steering angle information and move the display area D from side to side according to the steering angle information.

The steering angle information is information indicating how much the steering wheel of the vehicle is rotated, and the trajectory or the moving direction of the vehicle may be determined through the steering angle information.

For example, if the vehicle's steering wheel is rotated clockwise, it can be determined that the vehicle will move in the rear left direction when reversing. In this case, the driver will need the image on the rear left side of the vehicle, so the image area selection unit 120 can move the display area from the original image 400 to the left. 4B shows this.

On the other hand, if the steering wheel of the vehicle is rotated counterclockwise, it can be determined that the vehicle will move to the rear right direction when reversing. In this case, the driver will need the image on the rear right side of the vehicle, and thus the image area selection unit 120 may move the display area to the right in the original image 400. 4C shows this.

In addition, as mentioned above, since the parking assistance system 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a distance measurement sensor, the display area may be selected according to the distance between the vehicle and the parking target area.

For example, if the vehicle approaches the parking target area, the area far from the vehicle is not of interest, and the area close to the vehicle will be the main concern. Therefore, when the vehicle approaches the parking target area, for example, when the distance measured by the distance measuring sensor is within a certain range, the image area selection unit 120 displays the display area D within the original image 400. Can be moved down (because the image taken close to is located at the bottom of the original image 400).

4A to 4C, the height of the original image 400 and the height of the display area D are shown to be the same, so it is impossible to move the display area D up and down, but the views of FIGS. 4A to 4C are viewed as It shows an example of the invention and is not limited thereto. That is, unlike in FIGS. 4A to 4C, the height of the original image 400 is larger (or higher) than the height of the display area D, so that the display area D is moved up and down within the original image 400. Can.

In addition, if the vehicle is far from the parking target area, the image area selection unit 120 moves the display area D up in the original image 400 (the image of the distant image is on top of the original image 400). Position).

5 is a flowchart of the operation of the parking assistance system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, the operation method of the parking assistance system may include a step (S510) of recognizing the driver's parking attempt by the control unit 150 or directly inputting the parking attempt by the driver. The method in which the controller 150 can recognize the driver's parking attempt is that when the user places the transmission gear in the reverse (R) area or the driver presses a button or the like for notifying the parking attempt provided in the vehicle, the controller 150 Can be recognized. Here, a button for notifying a parking attempt provided in the vehicle may be a soft button displayed on the display unit 130 to allow the driver to touch, and a physically provided hard button such as an electronic parking button in the vehicle.

In addition, the driver can inform that the procedure for parking is started by pressing a button or the like for notifying the parking attempt provided in the vehicle.

Then, the image mode of the display unit 130 for parking assistance may be selected (S520). The image mode of the display unit 130 may include a fixed mode and a variable mode. The fixed mode refers to a mode similar to the prior art, and displays an image corresponding to a fixed shooting angle and shooting range. The variable mode uses the image area selection unit 120 linked to the steering angle according to an embodiment of the present invention, and selects the display area from the original image acquired by the camera unit 110 according to the operation of the driver's steering wheel. Refers to a mode that can be displayed on the display 130.

The driver can decide which operation mode to use the parking assist system. The operation of the parking assist system according to the fixed mode is similar to that of the prior art, so the description is omitted herein.

When the image mode for the display unit 130 is selected as the variable mode in operation S520, control of the image area selection unit 120 according to the steering angle of the steering wheel of the vehicle may be performed (S530 ). As described with reference to FIG. 4, the display area to be displayed on the display unit 130 may be selected and displayed from the original image acquired by the camera unit 110.

Next, it can be confirmed whether the parking of the vehicle is completed (S540). This can be confirmed through the driver's parking completion input or the transmission gear shift (P). If the parking is not completed, for example, if the transmission gear shifting is performed again or the driver inputs a button for informing the parking attempt again, the process goes to step S530 again.

If it is confirmed that the parking is completed, the image mode of the display 130 may be initialized (S550), and the operation of the parking assistance system according to an embodiment of the present invention ends.

The embodiments of the present invention have been described above, and a person having ordinary skill in the art can recognize that these embodiments are not intended to limit the invention and are merely illustrative, without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. It will be appreciated that variations, modifications, and the like are possible.

110: camera unit 120: video area selection unit
130: display unit 140: steering angle sensor
150: control unit 110-1: image sensor
110-2: MCU 110-3: Power supply

Claims (12)

Display unit;
A steering angle sensor for obtaining steering angle information from the steering wheel of the vehicle;
A camera module for obtaining an image having a first resolution;
An image region selector configured to select a portion of the image having the first resolution as a display region from a driver;
The movement information of the display area is determined based on the steering angle information,
After converting the display area selected based on the movement information in the image having the first resolution to a display image having a second resolution having a lower resolution than the first resolution, the display image is displayed on the display unit Parking control system comprising a; a control unit. According to claim 1,
The second resolution,
A parking assist system having a resolution corresponding to the resolution displayed on the display unit. delete According to claim 1,
The control unit,
After placing the display image in the center of the image having the first resolution, the parking assistance system for moving the display image up/down or left/right within the image having the first resolution based on the steering angle information. According to claim 4,
The control unit,
A parking assist system that moves the display image to the left when the steering wheel rotates clockwise, and moves the display image to the right when the steering wheel rotates counterclockwise. According to claim 4,
Further comprising; a distance measuring sensor for measuring the distance between the vehicle and the obstacle or parking target area; and
The control unit,
A parking assist system for moving the display image within the image having the first resolution based on the information obtained from the distance measuring sensor. The method of claim 6,
The control unit,
When the distance between the vehicle and the parking target area or the obstacle approaches, the parking area moves downward, and when the distance between the vehicle and the parking target area or the obstacle increases, the parking assist moves the display area upward. system According to claim 1,
The image area selection unit,
When the driver places the transmission gear in the reverse (R) area or presses a button informing the parking attempt provided in the vehicle, a parking assist system that selects a part of the image having the first resolution as a display area from the driver . According to claim 1,
Includes; a video mode selection unit for receiving a video mode selected by the driver,
The video mode,
Parking assistance including a fixed mode for displaying an image of the range photographed by the camera module on the display unit and a variable mode in which an image in which the display image is superimposed on an image of the range photographed by the camera module is displayed on the display unit system. According to claim 1,
The camera module includes a wide-angle lens,
The parking angle assistance system includes a maximum angle of view of the wide-angle lens ranging from 127 degrees to 180 degrees. According to claim 1,
The movement information,
A parking assist system that is information in which a moving direction and a moving range of the display area are determined based on the steering angle information. According to claim 1,
The control unit,
A parking assist system for arranging the display image at the center of the image having the first resolution, and then moving the display image up/down and left/right within the image having the first resolution based on the steering angle information.

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