KR102484082B1 - Failure determination system and method for turn signal lamp - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a system and method for determining a turn indicator failure.
In addition, the present invention includes a turn signal reception step of receiving a turn signal of a turn signal lamp and confirming an operation state of the turn indicator lamp, an extraction step of receiving an image of the front or rear of the vehicle and extracting a histogram, and based on the histogram by providing a failure determination step of generating a contrast histogram pattern or color histogram pattern and comparing a pre-stored turn indicator operation pattern with a contrast histogram pattern or color histogram pattern to determine whether the turn signal lamp is out of order, so that the front or rear of the vehicle It is possible to determine whether the direction indicator lamp is out of order by using an image captured by the direction indicator lamp, and information on the failure state of the direction indicator lamp can be provided to a driver inside the vehicle.

Description

Turn indicator failure determination system and method {Failure determination system and method for turn signal lamp}

The present invention relates to a system and method for determining a turn indicator failure.

In general, a turn signal lamp of a vehicle is a device for informing the driver of another vehicle of the driving state of the vehicle, lane change, etc. will flash with

On the other hand, the driver of the vehicle can easily inspect the external environment or other vehicles from inside the vehicle, but cannot visually inspect the outside of the vehicle itself, so even if the turn signal lamp is broken or disconnected and does not actually operate, There is a problem in that it is difficult to accurately check the operating state of the turn signal lamp and to recognize a failure state.

As a result, the driver of the vehicle may change lanes or make a left turn or right turn while mistaking that the driver has notified other vehicles of whether or not to change lanes or the driving direction by manipulating the turn indicators, and other vehicles may not turn on the turn indicators. There is a problem in that an accident may occur between vehicles due to a situation in which a vehicle suddenly changes lanes and gets involved.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a turn signal lamp failure determination system and method capable of providing information on a failure state of a turn signal lamp to a driver driving a vehicle.

The objects of the present invention are not limited to the above-mentioned objects, and other objects not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

The present invention for achieving the above object is a turn signal reception step of receiving the turn signal of the direction indicator light and confirming the operation state of the direction indicator light; Extracting a histogram by receiving an image of the front or rear of the vehicle; and a failure determination step of generating a contrast histogram pattern or a color histogram pattern based on the histogram, and comparing a pre-stored turn signal operation pattern with the contrast histogram pattern or the color histogram pattern to determine whether the turn signal lamp is out of order. wherein the direction indicator operation pattern is a pattern of a PWM signal input to the direction indicator lamp, the contrast histogram pattern and the color histogram pattern are patterns in the form of a pulse signal, and the controller controls the brightness histogram pattern or the color histogram pattern. If it matches the direction indicator operation pattern or is similar within a preset range, it is determined that the direction indicator is operating normally, and if it is different from the direction indicator operation pattern, it is determined that the direction indicator does not operate normally due to a malfunction or disconnection. It provides a direction indicator failure determination method characterized in that.

In addition, the present invention is a processor; and a memory for storing one or more instructions executable by the processor, wherein the processor, by executing the one or more instructions, receives a turn signal of the turn signal lamp to confirm an operating state of the turn indicator lamp, A histogram is extracted by receiving a front or rear image, a contrast histogram pattern or a color histogram pattern is generated based on the histogram, and a pre-stored direction indicator operation pattern is compared with the contrast histogram pattern or the color histogram pattern. to determine whether the turn indicator is out of order, the turn indicator operation pattern is a pattern of a PWM signal input to the turn indicator, the contrast histogram pattern and the color histogram pattern are patterns in the form of a pulse signal, and the processor If the histogram pattern or the color histogram pattern matches the direction indicator operation pattern or is similar within a preset range, it is determined that the turn signal lamp is operating normally, and if it is different from the direction indicator operation pattern, a malfunction or disconnection occurs in the indicator lamp. Provided is a turn indicator failure determination system characterized in that it is determined that it does not operate normally.

According to the above-mentioned problem solving means, the present invention can determine whether or not the turn signal lamp is out of order by using an image taken from the front or rear of the vehicle, and can provide information on the failure state of the turn indicator lamp to the driver inside the vehicle. There is an effect.

1 is a view for explaining a turn signal failure determination system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a block diagram illustrating functions performed by a processor of a system for determining a failure of a turn signal lamp according to an embodiment of the present invention;
3 is a diagram for explaining a region of interest for histogram extraction according to an embodiment of the present invention;
4 is a diagram for explaining a daytime and nighttime determination process according to an embodiment of the present invention;
5 is a diagram for explaining a process of generating a histogram pattern according to an embodiment of the present invention.
6 is a diagram for explaining a comparison process between an operation pattern of a turn signal lamp and a histogram pattern according to an embodiment of the present invention;
7 is a diagram showing actual data of a color histogram according to whether turn indicators are turned on or off.
8 is a view for explaining a method for determining a failure of a turn signal lamp according to an embodiment of the present invention;

In the following description, specific details of the invention are set forth to provide a thorough understanding of the invention, but it is common knowledge in the art that the invention may readily be practiced without and with variations thereof. It will be self-evident to those who have

Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying FIGS. 1 to 8, focusing on parts necessary for understanding the operation and operation according to the present invention.

1 is a diagram for explaining a turn signal lamp failure determination system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1 , a turn signal failure determination system 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a processor 110 and a memory 120.

Here, the turn signal failure determination system 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention is mounted on a drive video record system (DVRS) 200 or a black box provided in a vehicle, or the driving video record device 200 ) can be mounted on a controller or control board in a vehicle that operates in conjunction with

At this time, the above-described driving video recording device 200 is a device for recording an image through a camera unit 210 mounted inside a vehicle, and the turn signal lamp failure determination system 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention is described above. An image captured by the camera unit 210 may be received.

In addition, the turn signal failure determination system 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention receives a turn signal from a turn signal operation switch 300 mounted in a vehicle or an in-vehicle controller interlocking with the turn indicator operation switch 300 and a result of determining whether the turn signal lamp is out of order can be output through the cluster 400 of the vehicle.

One or more processors 110 may be included, may execute programs stored in the memory 120, and may also control overall operation of the turn indicator failure determination system 100.

The memory 120 may store instructions executable by the processor 110, programs executed by the processor 110, and may store input/output data.

Specifically, the memory 120 may store instructions or data related to at least one component of the processor 110 . Memory 120 may store software and/or programs. The memory 120 may include a kernel, middleware, application programming interface (API), and/or application programs. At least part of a kernel, middleware, or API may be referred to as an operating system. The kernel, for example, controls or controls system resources (eg, a bus, processor, or memory, etc.) used to execute operations or functions implemented in other programs (eg, middleware, APIs, or application programs). can manage In addition, the kernel may provide an interface capable of controlling or managing system resources by accessing individual components of the server in middleware, API, or application programs.

Hereinafter, functions performed by the processor 110 in the turn indicator failure determination system 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail.

2 is a block diagram for explaining functions performed by a processor of a turn signal failure determination system according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 describes a region of interest for histogram extraction according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining a process of determining daytime and nighttime according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a view for explaining a process of generating a histogram pattern according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining a comparison process between an operation pattern of a turn signal lamp and a histogram pattern according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 7 is a diagram showing actually measured data of a color histogram according to whether the turn indicator lamp is turned on or off. .

For reference, some or all of the blocks shown in FIG. 2 may be implemented as hardware and/or software components that perform specific functions. Functions performed by the blocks shown in FIG. 2 may be implemented by one or more microprocessors or circuit configurations for the function. Some or all of the blocks shown in FIG. 2 may be software modules configured in various programming languages or script languages that are executed in the processor 110 .

2 to 7, the processor 110 of the turn indicator failure determination system 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a receiver 111, a histogram extractor 112, a control unit 113, and a failure notification. may include section 114 .

The receiving unit 111 receives a turn signal of a turn signal lamp.

The receiving unit 111 may receive a turn signal from the turn indicator operating switch 300 installed in the vehicle or a controller in the vehicle interlocking with the turn indicator lamp operating switch 300 to check the operating state of the turn indicator lamp.

In addition, when it is confirmed that the direction indicator lamp is operated and turned on, the receiving unit 111 may output information notifying that the direction indicator lamp has been operated to the histogram extraction unit 112 and the control unit 113 described later. In addition, it may further include information indicating in which direction of the left or right direction indicator lamp is turned on.

The histogram extraction unit 112 receives an image of the front or rear of the vehicle from the camera unit 210 mounted inside the vehicle, and extracts a histogram from the received image.

As shown in FIG. 3, the histogram extractor 112 may extract the contrast histogram 30 from the regions of interest 10a and 10b set in the image, where the regions of interest 10a and 10b are the image This is an area set in consideration of the position of the direction indicator lamp within the area, and may be an area in which a change in color or brightness occurs under the influence of light emitted from the direction indicator lamp.

In this case, time and load can be reduced compared to extracting the histogram from the entire region of the image.

Meanwhile, the histogram extractor 112 may extract the color histogram 20 together with the contrast histogram 30 . In addition, the histogram extractor 112 may extract a histogram from the left region of interest 10a when the left turn signal is turned on, and extract a histogram from the right region of interest 10b when it is determined that the right turn signal is turned on.

The control unit 113 generates a histogram pattern 40 based on the histogram and compares the turn indicator operation pattern 50 and the histogram pattern 40 to determine whether the turn indicator lamp is out of order.

Here, the above-described turn indicator operation pattern 50 may be a pattern of a PWM signal input to the turn indicator lamp, and the histogram pattern 40 may also be generated as a pattern in the form of a pulse signal. Meanwhile, the above-described turn indicator operation pattern 50 may reflect the fact that when a disconnection occurs in the turn indicator lamp, the turn indicator lamp that is not disconnected blinks faster than normal.

When generating the histogram pattern 40, the control unit 113 first determines the degree of brightness and darkness of the image using the contrast ratio of the contrast histogram 30.

At this time, as shown in FIG. 4 , the controller 113 compares the number of pixels having a contrast value darker than the reference value 31 with the number of pixels having a contrast value brighter than the reference value 31 in the contrast histogram 30. When there are more pixels with dark contrast values, the image is determined to be dark, and when there are more pixels with bright contrast values, the image is determined to be bright. For reference, the X-axis of FIG. 4 represents the brightness of a pixel and the Y-axis represents the number of pixels.

Here, the reference value 31 described above may be set in advance as a specific contrast value through experiments or simulations, and in the case of daytime, the image may be determined to be bright, and in the case of driving at night or in a tunnel, the image may be determined to be dark. can be judged.

Then, if the image is determined to be dark, the control unit 113 generates a contrast histogram pattern from the contrast histogram 30 and compares it with the direction indicator operation pattern 50, and if it is determined that the image is bright, the contrast histogram 30 is generated. After switching to the color histogram 20, a color histogram pattern can be generated from the color histogram 20 and compared with the direction indicator operation pattern 50.

Meanwhile, when the contrast histogram 30 and the color histogram 20 are simultaneously extracted, a process of converting the contrast histogram 30 into the color histogram 20 may be omitted.

Then, the controller 113 generates the histogram pattern 40 by counting the number of pixels having a color or brightness within a specific range included in the histogram for each frame of the image.

As shown in (a) of FIG. 5, when generating a color histogram pattern that is a histogram pattern 40 in the color histogram 20, counting the number of pixels of a preset color range 21, and If the number of pixels counted in 21) is greater than the threshold, the histogram pattern 40 is stored as high, and as shown in (b) of FIG. 5, the number of pixels in the preset color range 21 exceeds the threshold. If less than that, the color histogram pattern can be created by storing it as a low in the histogram pattern 40 . For reference, the X-axis of FIG. 5 represents the color value of a pixel and the Y-axis represents the number of pixels.

In addition, a contrast histogram pattern may be generated in the same manner, and the above-described threshold may be set in advance through experiments or simulations.

After that, as shown in FIG. 6, the control unit 113 compares the direction indicator operation pattern 50 and the histogram pattern 40, and the direction indicator operation pattern 50 and the histogram pattern 40 match each other or If it is similar within a preset range, it is determined that the turn signal lamp is operating normally (a), and if the histogram pattern 40 is different from the turn indicator operation pattern 50, a malfunction or disconnection occurs in the turn signal lamp and operates normally. It can be determined that it cannot (b). For reference, the X-axis of FIG. 6 represents time and the Y-axis represents voltage.

On the other hand, since the surrounding environment of the vehicle is bright, the process of extracting the color histogram 20 to generate a histogram pattern and determining whether the turn signal lamp operates may be misunderstood as difficult.

However, as shown in FIG. 7, when extracting the color histogram 20 of an image captured while actually driving a vehicle, the color histogram ( In the color range 21 set in 20), a difference in a specific color component occurs.

That is, it is possible to check whether the direction indicators are blinking normally by using a difference between a specific color component in the color histogram 20 of the image, for example, an orange component mainly used for direction indicators.

In addition, in the case of a specific vehicle, since the normal turn signal lamp is provided to rapidly blink when a failure occurs in the turn indicator lamp, it is possible to easily extract a histogram from the region of interest 10a, 10b, and it is clear whether the turn indicator lamp is out of order. be able to judge.

The failure notification unit 114 outputs a result of determining whether the turn signal lamp is out of order.

When the control unit 113 determines that the turn signal lamp is out of order, the failure notification unit 114 may output a notification or message notifying the failure of the turn indicator lamp through the cluster 400 of the vehicle.

Accordingly, the driver can check information on whether the turn signal lamp is out of order inside the vehicle, and in particular, can check whether the turn indicator lamp is out of order in real time even while driving on the road using the vehicle.

As such, the present invention can be implemented by the processor 110 executing at least one executable command or at least one executable program stored in the memory 120, and the direction indicators according to an embodiment of the present invention described below. Likewise, the failure determination method may be implemented by having the processor 110 execute at least one executable command or at least one executable program stored in the memory 120 .

8 is a diagram for explaining a method for determining a failure of a turn signal lamp according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 8 , the processor 110 of the turn indicator failure determination system 100 first receives a turn signal of the turn indicator (S100).

At this time, the processor 110 may receive a turn signal from the turn signal control switch 300 mounted in the vehicle or the controller in the vehicle interlocking with the turn indicator switch 300, and based on this, the control state of the turn indicator can be checked.

Next, the processor 110 receives an image of the front or rear of the vehicle and extracts a histogram from the received image (S200).

At this time, the processor 110 may receive an image through the camera unit 210 mounted inside the vehicle, and may extract a contrast histogram 30 from the received image.

In addition, the processor 110 extracts the contrast histogram 30 from the ROI 10a, 10b set in consideration of the position of the turn signal lamp within the image, saving time and load compared to extracting the histogram from the entire region of the image. can be reduced

Meanwhile, in step S200, the processor 110 may simultaneously extract the contrast histogram 30 and the color histogram 20.

Next, the processor 110 generates a histogram pattern 40 based on the histogram, and compares the previously stored turn indicator operation pattern 50 with the histogram pattern 40 to determine whether the turn indicator is out of order (S300). ).

At this time, the processor 110 first determines the degree of lightness and darkness of the image (S310), and when it is determined that the image is bright, the contrast histogram 30 is converted into the color histogram 20 to generate a color histogram pattern, and then the direction indicator light It is compared with the operation pattern 50 (S320), and if it is determined that the image is dark, a contrast histogram pattern can be generated and compared with the direction indicator operation pattern 50 (S330).

Then, the processor 110 determines whether the color histogram pattern or the contrast histogram pattern matches the turn signal lamp operation pattern 50 (S340). (S350), if it is different from the direction indicator operation pattern 50, it may be determined that the direction indicator does not normally operate due to a failure or disconnection (S360).

Further, in step S310 described above, the number of pixels having a contrast value darker than the reference value 31 is compared with the number of pixels having a contrast value brighter than the reference value 31 in the contrast histogram 30, and pixels having a darker contrast value are compared. If there are more pixels, it is determined that the image is dark, and if there are more pixels with bright contrast values, it is determined that the image is bright.

Also, in steps S320 and S330, the processor 110 may generate the histogram pattern 40 by counting the number of pixels having a color or contrast in a specific range included in the histogram for each frame of the image.

At this time, the processor 110 counts the number of pixels included in a specific range, stores the counted number as high if it is greater than the threshold value, and stores it as low if the counted number is less than the threshold value, respectively. The histogram pattern 40 may be generated by repeating for each frame of . Here, the aforementioned threshold is set in advance through experiments or simulations.

In addition, the above-described turn indicator operation pattern 50 may be a pattern of a PWM signal input to the turn indicator lamp, and the histogram pattern 40 may also be generated as a pattern in the form of a pulse signal.

Next, when it is determined that the turn indicator is out of order, the processor 110 outputs a result of determining whether the turn indicator is out of order as a notification or message (S400).

At this time, the processor 110 outputs a notification or message to the cluster 400 of the vehicle, so that the driver can check information on whether the turn signal lamp is out of order inside the vehicle, and driving on the road using the vehicle. In real time, it is also possible to check whether the direction indicators are out of order.

Steps of a method or algorithm described in connection with an embodiment of the present invention may be implemented directly in hardware, implemented in a software module executed by hardware, or implemented by a combination thereof.

A software module may include random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), flash memory, hard disk, removable disk, CD-ROM, or It can reside in any form of computer readable storage medium well known in the art to which this invention pertains.

The components of the present invention are stored in a non-transitory storage medium, executed on a computer including a processor to perform the steps of the method or algorithm described above, and implemented as a computer program (or application) to be executed in combination with a computer that is hardware. and can be stored in a computer readable storage medium. Components of the present invention may be implemented as software programming or software elements, and similarly, embodiments may include various algorithms implemented as data structures, processes, routines, or combinations of other programming constructs, such as C, C++ , Java (Java), can be implemented in a programming or scripting language such as assembler (assembler). Functional aspects may be implemented in an algorithm running on one or more processors.

In the above, preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described by way of example, but the scope of the present invention is not limited only to these specific embodiments, and can be appropriately changed within the scope described in the claims.

100: direction indicator failure determination system
110: processor
111: receiving unit 112: histogram extraction unit
113: control unit 114: failure notification unit
120: memory

Claims (2)

A turn signal receiving step of receiving a turn signal of the turn indicator and confirming an operation state of the turn indicator;
Extracting a histogram by receiving an image of the front or rear of the vehicle; and
A failure determination step of generating a contrast histogram pattern or a color histogram pattern based on the histogram, and comparing a pre-stored turn signal operation pattern with the contrast histogram pattern or the color histogram pattern to determine whether the turn signal lamp has failed. do,
The turn indicator operation pattern is a pattern of a PWM signal input to the turn indicator lamp,
The contrast histogram pattern and the color histogram pattern are patterns in the form of pulse signals,
The failure determination step,
If the contrast histogram pattern or the color histogram pattern matches the turn signal lamp operation pattern or is similar within a preset range, it is determined that the turn indicator lamp is operating normally. A method for determining a failure of a turn signal lamp, characterized in that it is determined that it has occurred and does not operate normally.
processor; and
A memory for storing one or more instructions executable by the processor; includes,
The processor, by executing the one or more instructions,
Receive the turn signal of the direction indicator light to check the operation status of the direction indicator light,
Receiving an image taken from the front or rear of the vehicle and extracting a histogram;
Based on the histogram, a contrast histogram pattern or a color histogram pattern is generated, and a previously stored direction indicator operation pattern is compared with the contrast histogram pattern or the color histogram pattern to determine whether the turn signal lamp is out of order,
The turn indicator operation pattern is a pattern of a PWM signal input to the turn indicator lamp,
The contrast histogram pattern and the color histogram pattern are patterns in the form of pulse signals,
the processor,
If the contrast histogram pattern or the color histogram pattern matches the turn signal lamp operation pattern or is similar within a preset range, it is determined that the turn indicator lamp is operating normally. A system for determining a turn signal lamp failure, characterized in that it is determined that it has occurred and does not operate normally.

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