WO2009095989A1

WO2009095989A1 - Image acquisition device, image acquisition method, image acquisition program, and storage medium

Info

Publication number: WO2009095989A1
Application number: PCT/JP2008/051265
Authority: WO
Inventors: Kohei Ito; Ryujiro Fujita
Original assignee: Pioneer Corporation
Priority date: 2008-01-29
Filing date: 2008-01-29
Publication date: 2009-08-06

Abstract

An image acquisition device is connected to a camera and a camera direction control device and comprises danger information acquisition means and direction control means. The danger information acquisition means acquires danger information that is information about a danger condition. The direction control means transmits a direction control signal for the camera to the camera direction control device according to the danger information acquired by the danger information acquisition means. Accordingly, in the condition in which the accident occurrence rate is relatively high according to the danger information, the camera is controlled so as to be ready to take a photograph. Therefore, a video at an accident or at a danger time can be obtained surely.

Description

Image acquisition apparatus, image acquisition method, image acquisition program, and storage medium

The present invention relates to a technique for acquiring an image by controlling a camera.

In the navigation device, a method has been proposed that can be used to deal with accidents such as driver emergency by taking images of the inside and outside of the vehicle at the time of the accident by reversing the camera and transferring the taken images. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).

JP 2002-293271 A

By the way, in addition to the driver's emergency purpose, for example, when using the video taken by the camera for the purpose of elucidating the cause of the accident or preventing the accident, it is necessary to reliably acquire the video from the vehicle at the time of the accident. In particular, when the camera is mounted on an in-vehicle multipurpose device, the in-vehicle multipurpose device operates for other purposes such as communication with a driver, and thus the direction of the camera frequently changes. In this case, it is necessary to appropriately control the direction of the camera.

Examples of problems to be solved by the present invention include the above. It is an object of the present invention to reliably acquire an image at the time of an accident or danger in an in-vehicle camera system with a variable shooting direction.

The invention according to claim 1 is an image acquisition device that is mounted on a moving body and electromagnetically connected to a camera direction control device that controls a shooting direction by a camera and acquires an image shot by the camera. Danger information acquisition means for acquiring danger information that is information relating to a dangerous state, and direction control means for transmitting a direction control signal of the camera to the camera direction control device based on the danger information acquired by the danger information acquisition means And.

In the invention according to claim 11, a method for controlling an image acquisition device that is mounted on a moving body and electromagnetically connected to a camera direction control device that controls a shooting direction by a camera and acquires an image shot by the camera. A risk information acquisition step of acquiring danger information that is information relating to a dangerous state, and transmitting a camera direction control signal to the camera direction control device based on the danger information acquired by the danger information acquisition means. And a direction control step.

The invention according to claim 12 is executed by an image acquisition device that is mounted on a moving body and electromagnetically connected to a camera direction control device that controls a shooting direction by a camera and acquires an image shot by the camera. An image acquisition program for acquiring danger information, which is information relating to a dangerous state, and direction control of the camera to the camera direction control device based on the danger information acquired by the danger information acquisition means. Direction control means for transmitting a signal.

It is a figure which shows the structure of an image acquisition system. It is a conceptual diagram of an image acquisition apparatus. 1 is a conceptual diagram of an image acquisition device, a camera direction control device, and a camera mounted on a vehicle. It is a figure which shows an example of the movable range of a camera direction control apparatus. It is a figure which shows an example of the limiting method of the movable range of a camera direction control apparatus. It is a flowchart of an image acquisition process. It is a flowchart of the image acquisition process in a modification.

Explanation of symbols

20 System controller 22 CPU
31 Disk drive 36 Data storage unit 38 Communication device 40 Display unit 60 Input device 100 Image acquisition device 200 Camera direction control device 300 Camera 400 Vehicle

In one aspect of the present invention, an image acquisition device is mounted on a moving body and electromagnetically connected to a camera direction control device that controls a shooting direction by a camera, and acquires an image captured by the camera. A risk information acquisition unit that acquires risk information that is information related to a dangerous state, and transmits a camera direction control signal to the camera direction control device based on the risk information acquired by the risk information acquisition unit. Direction control means.

The image acquisition device described above is, for example, a vehicle-mounted navigation device mounted on a moving body such as an automobile, and includes a camera and a camera direction control device, and includes a danger information acquisition unit and a direction control unit. The CPU (Central Processing Unit) of the image acquisition apparatus corresponds to these means. The danger information acquisition means acquires danger information that is information related to a dangerous state. The direction control means transmits a camera direction control signal to the camera direction control device based on the danger information acquired by the danger information acquisition means. As a result, when the accident occurrence probability is relatively high based on the danger information, it is possible to acquire an image of an accident or danger without missing it by controlling the camera to be in a shooting system.

In one aspect of the image acquisition device, the danger information is information relating to a dangerous zone, and the direction control unit determines whether the dangerous zone is in the vicinity, and determines that the dangerous zone is in the vicinity. The direction control signal is transmitted. In danger zones such as intersections and curves, where accidents occur frequently, the probability of accidents is relatively high. Therefore, by controlling the camera for shooting when approaching the danger zone, it is possible to acquire an image of an accident or danger without missing it.

In another aspect of the image acquisition device, the direction control signal is a signal for controlling the camera to face the danger zone.

In another aspect of the above image acquisition device, the direction control means considers that the danger zone is ahead of the moving direction of the moving body. Thereby, even when the direction of the danger zone cannot be accurately obtained, the direction of the camera can be determined, and the camera control process can be simplified and speeded up.

In another aspect of the image acquisition device, the direction control signal is a signal that limits a movable range of the camera direction control device so that an imaging range includes at least the danger zone. In this aspect, the camera and the camera direction control device are allowed to operate in a range where the danger zone can be photographed. Thereby, for example, when the camera and the camera direction control device are realized by an in-vehicle multipurpose device or the like, other purposes such as communication with the driver can be continued within the limited operation range.

In another aspect of the above image acquisition device, the direction control signal limits the movable range to at least a range within half of the camera angle of view from the direction of the danger zone. By defining the movable range of the camera direction control device in this way, it is possible to appropriately acquire the image of the danger zone while allowing the operation of the camera direction control device within a certain range.

In another aspect of the image acquisition device, the danger information acquisition unit acquires a fatigue state of the user as danger information, and the direction control unit controls the camera when the degree of the fatigue state is equal to or greater than a predetermined level. It controls so that it may point to the front of the said mobile body. Generally, when a user who is a driver is in a fatigued state when driving a vehicle, the probability of occurrence of an accident is high regardless of the location, compared to a case where the user is not in a fatigued state. Therefore, in this aspect, the user's fatigue state is measured on a constant basis, and the direction control of the camera is performed when the measured value is equal to or greater than a certain value. This also makes it possible to appropriately perform camera photography in a dangerous state.

In another aspect of the image acquisition device, the image acquisition device is mounted on a vehicle, and the danger information acquisition unit measures the degree of wobbling of the vehicle from the relative position of the white line in the image acquired from the camera. The degree of wobbling is acquired as danger information. In general, when fatigue is accumulated in a driver, the operation of the vehicle becomes unstable, and as a result, the vehicle fluctuates. Therefore, it is possible to appropriately determine whether or not the current traveling state is dangerous by using this fluctuation condition as danger information.

In another aspect of the image acquisition device, the image acquisition device is further mounted on a vehicle, and further includes an image storage unit that stores an image captured by the camera when an abnormality of the vehicle is detected. The means stores the image data before the first time for detecting the abnormality and the image data from the abnormality detection until the second time. In general, when a vehicle abnormality occurs due to an accident or the like, not only the image after the abnormality occurs but also the image before the abnormality occurs can be used effectively as traffic information. Therefore, in this aspect, the captured video is always held for a certain time, and when an abnormality occurs, the image for a certain time before the occurrence of the abnormality and the image for a certain time after the occurrence of the abnormality are stored.

In another aspect of the image acquisition device, the direction control unit stops transmission of a user operation signal to the camera direction control device during photographing in a dangerous state. As a result, it is possible to acquire an image of an accident or danger without being affected by the user operation.

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

[Schematic configuration of image acquisition system]
FIG. 1 shows a conceptual diagram of an image acquisition system in the present embodiment. The image acquisition system includes an image acquisition device 100, a camera direction control device 200, and a camera 300.

The image acquisition apparatus 100 acquires information such as a position (hereinafter referred to as “danger information”) regarding a zone (hereinafter referred to as “dangerous zone”) that is assumed to have a relatively high probability of occurrence of an accident. Then, a signal for controlling the direction of the camera (hereinafter referred to as “direction control signal”) is generated and transmitted to the camera direction control device 200 so that an image of the danger information can be acquired. And the image acquisition apparatus 100 preserve | saves the image data which the camera 300 acquired as needed. Therefore, the image acquisition device 100 and the camera direction control device 200 are connected by an electromagnetic method regardless of wired connection or wireless connection, and can exchange data according to a predetermined communication protocol. Among the processes described above, the danger information is acquired by the danger information acquisition unit, the direction control signal is generated and transmitted by the direction control unit, and the image data is stored by the image storage unit.

The camera direction control device 200 is a device that adjusts the direction of the camera 300 installed on the device based on the direction control signal received from the image acquisition device 100. The camera direction control device 200 can point the camera 300 in an arbitrary direction, and can be configured by a free pan head, for example. In addition, the camera direction control device 200 transmits image data captured by the camera 300 to the image acquisition device 100 as necessary.

The camera 300 is an optical machine that has a certain angle of view and photographs a subject within the angle of view. The camera 300 is installed on the camera direction control device 200. In the present embodiment, the camera 300 mainly captures a subject as a moving image, and the captured image data is transmitted to the image acquisition device 100 by the camera direction control device 200.

The image acquisition system shown in FIG. 1 is an example, and the configuration of the image acquisition system to which the present invention can be applied is not limited to this. For example, the image acquisition device 100 may include a camera direction control device 200. In this case, the image acquisition apparatus 100 exchanges direction control signals and image data with a portion corresponding to the camera direction control apparatus 200, for example, via a bus in the apparatus. For example, when the image acquisition device 100 is applied to a vehicle-mounted navigation device, the camera direction control device 200 and the camera 300 may be installed on the front and rear sides of the vehicle. In this case, there are two camera direction control devices 200 and two cameras 300, respectively. In addition, the camera direction control device 200 and the camera 300 may be realized by a single multipurpose device. Note that the “multipurpose device” refers to a machine or device that autonomously performs actions such as communication with a user and photographing a scenery outside a vehicle. In addition, the multipurpose device may have a function of interlocking with the navigation device and a function of reproducing music or video content as necessary.

[Configuration of Image Acquisition Device]
FIG. 2 shows the configuration of the image acquisition device 100. As shown in FIG. 2, the image acquisition device 100 includes a self-supporting positioning device 10, a GPS receiver 18, a system controller 20, a disk drive 31, a data storage unit 36, a communication interface 37, a communication device 38, a display unit 40, an audio. An output unit 50 and an input device 60 are provided. The image acquisition device 100 can be suitably applied to, for example, a navigation device.

The self-supporting positioning device 10 includes an acceleration sensor 11, an angular velocity sensor 12, and a distance sensor 13. The acceleration sensor 11 is made of, for example, a piezoelectric element, detects vehicle acceleration, and outputs acceleration data. The angular velocity sensor 12 is composed of, for example, a vibrating gyroscope, detects the angular velocity of the vehicle when the direction of the vehicle is changed, and outputs angular velocity data and relative azimuth data. The distance sensor 13 measures a vehicle speed pulse composed of a pulse signal generated with the rotation of the vehicle wheel.

The GPS receiver 18 receives radio waves 19 carrying downlink data including positioning data from a plurality of GPS satellites. The positioning data is used to detect the absolute position of the vehicle from latitude and longitude information.

The system controller 20 includes an interface 21, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 22, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 23, and a RAM (Random Access Memory) 24, and controls the entire image acquisition apparatus 100.

The interface 21 performs an interface operation with the acceleration sensor 11, the angular velocity sensor 12, the distance sensor 13, and the GPS receiver 18. From these, vehicle speed pulses, acceleration data, relative azimuth data, angular velocity data, GPS positioning data, absolute azimuth data, and the like are input to the system controller 20. The CPU 22 controls the entire system controller 20. The ROM 23 includes a nonvolatile memory (not shown) in which a control program for controlling the system controller 20 is stored. The RAM 24 stores various data such as route data preset by the user via the input device 60 so as to be readable, and provides a working area to the CPU 22.

A system controller 20, a disk drive 31 such as a CD-ROM drive or a DVD-ROM drive, a data storage unit 36, a communication interface 37, a display unit 40, an audio output unit 50 and an input device 60 are mutually connected via a bus line 30. It is connected to the.

The disk drive 31 reads and outputs content data such as music data and video data from a disk 33 such as a CD or DVD under the control of the system controller 20. The disk drive 31 may be either a CD-ROM drive or a DVD-ROM drive, or may be a CD and DVD compatible drive.

The data storage unit 36 is configured by, for example, an HDD or the like, and stores various data used for navigation processing such as map data. In particular, in the present embodiment, the data storage unit 36 stores danger information. Further, the data storage unit 36 stores image data taken by the camera 300 as necessary.

The communication device 38 includes, for example, an FM tuner, a beacon receiver, a mobile phone, a dedicated communication card, and the like, and is distributed from a VICS (Vehicle Information Communication System) center or the like (hereinafter referred to as “VICS information”). Is acquired from the radio wave 39. The interface 37 performs an interface operation of the communication device 38 and inputs the VICS information to the system controller 20 or the like. In the present embodiment, the communication device 38 performs communication processing of image data and direction control signals with the camera direction control device 200. Furthermore, the communication apparatus 38 acquires danger information from the center which has the server installed on communication networks, such as the internet, as needed. Acquisition of danger information is executed, for example, regularly or by a user operation. Moreover, the communication apparatus 38 transmits the danger information regarding the danger zone which the user registered to the above-mentioned center as needed, and provides the danger information. The danger information to be transmitted to the center is not limited to the information related to the dangerous zone registered by the user. For example, when the image acquisition apparatus 100 detects an abnormal shake or the like during traveling, the information on the detected point is transmitted. Also good.

The display unit 40 displays various display data on a display device such as a display under the control of the system controller 20. Specifically, the system controller 20 reads map data from the data storage unit 36. The display unit 40 displays the map data read from the data storage unit 36 by the system controller 20 on the display screen. The display unit 40 is composed of a graphic controller 41 that controls the entire display unit 40 based on control data sent from the CPU 22 via the bus line 30 and image information that can be displayed immediately, such as a VRAM (VideoＲＡＭRAM) memory. A buffer memory 42 that temporarily stores, a display control unit 43 that controls display of a display 44 such as a liquid crystal display or a CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) based on image data output from the graphic controller 41, and a display 44 are provided. . The display 44 functions as an image display unit, and includes, for example, a liquid crystal display device having a diagonal size of about 5 to 10 inches and is mounted near the front panel in the vehicle.

The audio output unit 50 performs D / A (Digital-to-Analog) conversion of audio digital data sent from the CD-ROM drive 31, DVD-ROM 32, RAM 24, or the like via the bus line 30 under the control of the system controller 20. A D / A converter 51 to perform, an amplifier (AMP) 52 that amplifies the audio analog signal output from the D / A converter 51, and a speaker 53 that converts the amplified audio analog signal into sound and outputs the sound into the vehicle. It is prepared for.

The input device 60 includes keys, switches, buttons, a remote controller, a voice input device, and the like for inputting various commands and data. The input device 60 is arranged around the front panel and the display 44 of the main body of the in-vehicle electronic system mounted in the vehicle. In the present embodiment, since the display 44 is a touch panel system, the touch panel provided on the display screen of the display 44 also functions as the input device 60.

Note that the CPU 22 and the like in FIG. 2 correspond to direction control means, danger information acquisition means, and image storage means in the present invention.

[Image acquisition method]
Next, an image acquisition method performed by the image acquisition apparatus 100 in FIG. 2 will be specifically described. Hereinafter, the image acquisition device 100 will be described as being attached to a vehicle and functioning as a navigation device. First, a method for acquiring information about a dangerous zone that is a subject of photographing of an acquired image, that is, risk information will be described.

The image acquisition apparatus 100 holds information relating to the danger zone, that is, danger information, in advance in the data storage unit 36 together with map data, which is various data used for navigation processing, for example. A dangerous zone is a zone where the probability of a traffic accident is assumed to be relatively high. Specifically, it is a sharp curve, an intersection with many roads, an intersection without a signal, road regulations due to construction, and other obstacles. A zone having things or the like can be considered as an example. At this time, the danger information is linked with the position information of the map data, for example. More specifically, when map data such as roads and intersections are assigned IDs, each ID is associated with a flag indicating a dangerous zone and stored in the database.

Note that the danger information may be periodically acquired from a server installed on a communication network such as the Internet or a closed network, for example, in addition to being stored in advance in the data storage unit 36 or the like. In that case, the image acquisition device 100 acquires the danger information from the server described above by the communication device 38, and periodically updates the danger information held in the data storage unit 36. Thereby, the user can use the danger information reflecting the latest situation. In this case, in addition to periodically acquiring danger information, only danger information near the current position may be received one by one based on the current position information. In this case, the selection of the danger information based on the current position may be performed by the server on the center side or the image acquisition apparatus 100.

Also, the danger information may be registered by the user. In that case, the user may designate a dangerous zone with the input device 60 of the image acquisition device 100, and register map data such as an intersection corresponding to the designated dangerous zone as dangerous information.

Next, the camera direction control method will be described. First, the CPU 22 determines whether any danger zone exists nearby based on the danger zone position information included in the danger information of each danger zone and the current position information of the vehicle acquired by the GPS receiver 18. . The determination as to whether the danger zone exists nearby can be made by, for example, calculating whether each danger zone exists within a predetermined distance from the current location. Alternatively, when the destination is set by the user, the above-described determination processing target may be limited only to a dangerous zone existing on or near the destination route.

Next, when there is a dangerous zone nearby from the current position, the CPU 22 controls the direction of the camera 300 so as to acquire an image of the dangerous zone. FIG. 3 shows a conceptual diagram of the image acquisition device 100, the camera direction control device 200, and the camera 300 mounted on the vehicle 400. In addition, each position in the vehicle 400 of FIG. 3 is an example, and is not limited to this. In addition, when the camera direction control device 200 and the camera 300 are realized by a single multipurpose device, the camera direction control device 200 and the camera 300 can operate as necessary. Furthermore, the camera direction control device 200 and the camera 300 may be installed inside or outside the vehicle 400.

As shown in FIG. 3, the camera 300 has a certain angle of view Θ and is located within the angle of view Θ and can be imaged (hereinafter referred to as “imaging range”), that is, the left boundary line 90 a and the right boundary. A subject such as a danger zone in a range located between the lines 90b can be photographed, and image data can be generated mainly as a moving image. The camera direction control device 200 can rotate in the direction indicated by the arrow based on the direction control signal received from the image acquisition device 100, and the camera direction control device 200 rotates to change the direction of the camera 300. Therefore, the shooting range of the camera 300 can be changed.

Here, the image acquisition device 100 transmits the direction control signal to rotate the camera direction control device 200 so that the camera 300 faces in the direction of the specified dangerous zone position. As a result, the camera 300 can take an image of the danger zone. The image acquisition device 100 receives the image data acquired by the camera 300 from the camera 300 or the camera direction control device 200 via the communication device 38 or the like.

Note that the image acquisition apparatus 100 does not perform control to direct the direction of the camera 300 toward the danger zone, but instead captures the range in which the camera direction control apparatus 200 can rotate (hereinafter referred to as “movable range”). Control limited to the range included in the danger zone may be performed. FIG. 4 shows an example of the movable range of the camera direction control device 200 that includes the danger zone in the imaging range. As shown in FIG. 4, the rotational movement of the camera direction control device 200 in the right direction is such that the left boundary line 90xa of the imaging range of the camera 300 does not exceed the danger zone, that is, the left border line 90xa is on the right side of the danger zone. It is limited to the range which is not located in. Then, the rotational movement of the camera direction control device 200 in the left direction is performed until the right boundary line 90yb of the imaging range of the camera 300 does not exceed the danger zone, that is, the range where the left boundary line 90yb is not located on the left side of the danger zone. It is limited to. As a result, the camera direction control device 200 and the camera 300 are realized as multipurpose devices, and even when actions such as communication with the user and photographing of a scenery outside the vehicle are autonomously performed, the danger zone is in the angle of view of the camera 300. These actions can be continued as long as In the above example, the imaging range of the camera 300 is limited to a range including all of the dangerous zones. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the movable range may be set so that at least half of the dangerous zones are included in the imaging range. You may relax and restrict.

In addition, assuming that the danger zone that is the subject of photographing by the camera 300 always exists in front of the vehicle, the direction control of the camera 300 may be limited to the front when it is determined that the danger zone exists nearby. In particular, when danger information is stored in association with a specific road or intersection, the direction of the danger zone may not be accurately identified. However, there is a high possibility that an intersection or road that is a danger zone exists in front of the vehicle. Therefore, by assuming that the danger zone is ahead of the vehicle in this way, the direction of the camera 300 can be determined in the direction where the danger zone is most likely to exist, and the processing can be simplified and speeded up. it can.

In addition, as a specific restriction method for restricting the movable range of the camera direction control device 200 to a range including the dangerous zone in the imaging range of the camera 300, the angle of view Θ of the camera 300 is half (1/2) from the direction of the dangerous zone. The left and right movable ranges of the camera direction control device 200 may be included. This will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 shows a conceptual diagram of the imaging range of the camera 300. As shown in FIG. 5, the imaging range when the danger zone is directly in front is formed by the left boundary line 90a and the right boundary line 90b using the angle of view Θ. Therefore, by restricting the movable range of the camera direction control device 200 within half of the angle of view Θ on both the left and right sides, the imaging range can capture at least half of the danger zone. That is, when the camera direction control device 200 is moved to the left from the front of the danger zone by a half of the angle of view Θ, the imaging range is a range formed by the left boundary line 90va and the right boundary line 90vb, and the camera direction control device 200 Is moved from the front of the danger zone to the right by half of the angle of view Θ, the imaging range is a range formed by the left boundary line 90wa and the right boundary line 90wb. Therefore, for example, when it is desired to limit the movable range of the camera direction control device 200 so as to include more than half of the danger zone, it is realized by setting the left and right movable ranges from the danger zone to be smaller than half of the angle of view Θ. be able to. Thereby, the direction control of the camera 300 can be appropriately executed in a range including the danger zone in the imaging range of the camera 300.

Further, when the camera direction control device 200 is controlled based on the danger information, a user operation on the camera 300 or the camera direction control device 200 may not be accepted. As a result, it is possible to reliably perform shooting in the dangerous zone without being affected by the user operation.

[Processing flow]
Next, the procedure of image acquisition processing will be described using the flowchart shown in FIG. Steps S1 to S5 represent processes performed by the CPU 22 of the image acquisition apparatus 100. In the flowchart of FIG. 6, step S1 corresponds to the danger information acquisition means, steps S2 and S3 correspond to the direction control means, and steps S4 and S5 correspond to the image storage means. Further, the process shown in the flowchart is repeatedly executed.

First, the CPU 22 obtains danger information related to a spontaneous frequent occurrence point or the like (step S1). As described above, the danger information acquisition method may be associated with map data in advance and stored as a database, or the danger information may be acquired from the center periodically or according to the current position information.

Next, the CPU 22 determines whether or not there is a danger zone near the vehicle (step S2). In this determination, for example, when danger information is stored in association with a road or an intersection, it can be determined that a dangerous zone exists when the vehicle enters the road or the intersection. When the CPU 22 determines that there is no danger zone nearby (step S2; No), the CPU 22 does not particularly control the direction of the camera 300. Therefore, when the camera direction control device 200 and the camera 300 are realized as multi-purpose devices, communication with the user is performed autonomously or by user operation regardless of the control of the image acquisition device 100, You can shoot landscapes.

On the other hand, when the CPU 22 determines that the danger zone exists nearby (step S2; Yes), the CPU 22 determines the direction of the camera 300 from the danger information corresponding to the danger zone, that is, determines the rotational position of the camera direction control device 200. Then, a direction control signal is transmitted to the camera direction control device 200 (step S3). At this time, instead of specifically determining and controlling the rotational position of the camera direction control device 200, the movable range of the camera direction control device 200 may be limited. The camera that has received the direction control signal includes the danger zone in the imaging range, but is controlled so that the vehicle (moving body) on which the camera is mounted enters the imaging range until the vehicle moves away from the danger zone by a predetermined distance or more. Also good. Specifically, for example, it is conceivable to perform control so as to continuously change the rotational position of the camera control device 200 according to the moving direction and speed of the vehicle using vehicle speed information and the like.

It is also possible to add information indicating the degree of danger to the danger information. Thus, for example, when a plurality of danger zones exist near the vehicle at the same time, prioritization may be performed according to the degree of danger. As a method for indicating the degree of danger, for example, ranking by the frequency of occurrence of accidents that occurred in the past, ranking by the number of numbers registered as dangerous zones by the user, and the like can be considered.

Next, the CPU 22 determines whether or not an abnormality has occurred in the vehicle (step S4). This determination can be realized, for example, by monitoring the presence or absence of an impact by detecting a sudden change in speed by the acceleration sensor 11. Further, when the image acquisition apparatus 100 further includes an infrared device (not shown), it can be realized by monitoring whether an obstacle or the like approaches within a predetermined distance in front of the vehicle using the infrared device. As another example, it is also possible to detect the degree of vehicle shake by performing predetermined image processing on image data acquired by the camera 300 and monitor the degree.

Then, after determining that the danger zone exists in the vicinity, if no abnormality occurs in the vehicle until the vehicle passes the predetermined time or the danger zone (step S4; No), the CPU 22 returns the process to step S1, and the danger zone is detected. Monitor again if it is not near the vehicle.

On the other hand, when an abnormality occurs in the vehicle (step S4; Yes), the CPU 22 saves image data before and after the occurrence of the abnormality (step S5). Specifically, the CPU 22 takes images at a predetermined time before the occurrence of the abnormality (hereinafter referred to as “first time”) and a predetermined time after the occurrence of the abnormality (hereinafter referred to as “second time”). Save the image data. This is because, for example, the image acquisition apparatus 100 always holds an image acquired by the camera 300 in the buffer for the first time or longer, that is, at least the captured image data for the first time is temporarily stored in the data storage unit 36 or the like. It can be realized by keeping it. Thereby, the video at the time of occurrence of abnormality can be accurately saved, and can be used as traffic information thereafter.

Note that the processing of step S4 may be omitted, and if a dangerous zone exists nearby, the image data captured by the camera 300 may be uniformly stored regardless of whether or not an abnormality has occurred in the vehicle. Further, instead of the image acquisition device 100 storing the image data as in step S5, the video may be uploaded to the center by the communication device 38 or the like.

As described above, the image acquisition device according to the present embodiment is connected to the camera and the camera direction control device, and includes the danger information acquisition unit and the direction control unit. The danger information acquisition means acquires danger information that is information related to a dangerous state. The direction control means transmits a camera direction control signal to the camera direction control device based on the danger information acquired by the danger information acquisition means. As a result, when the accident occurrence probability is relatively high based on the danger information, it is possible to acquire an image of an accident or danger without missing it by controlling the camera to be in a shooting system.

[Modification]
In the above-described embodiment, the image acquisition apparatus 100 controls the direction of the camera 300 depending on whether or not a dangerous zone such as a high-accident location is nearby, and takes a picture of the vicinity of the dangerous zone. However, instead of determining whether the danger zone is nearby, the user's (driver) 's fatigue state is monitored, and when a predetermined symptom appears, the direction of the camera 300 is controlled to obtain an image that can be seen from the vehicle. You can also. Hereinafter, the fatigue state of the user is defined as “dangerous state” together with the danger zone.

Whether the user is in a fatigued state can be determined according to various criteria. For example, the image acquisition device 100 may include a biological sensor, and may be determined based on the measurement result of the user's heart rate and other biological information. In addition, the presence or absence of fatigue may be determined based on the driving time, or the user's face may be photographed, and the presence or absence of fatigue may be determined based on the number of blinks. Alternatively, the fatigue state may be determined by fixing the orientation of the camera 300 to the front of the vehicle and detecting the wobbling of the vehicle based on the image data acquired from the camera 300. In this case, for example, the wobbling of the vehicle can be determined by a change in the position of a white line on the road.

FIG. 7 shows a flowchart of image acquisition processing according to the modification. The flowchart of FIG. 7 is executed by the CPU 22 of the image acquisition apparatus 100, step S101 corresponds to the danger information acquisition unit, steps S102 and S103 correspond to the direction control unit, and steps S104 and S105 correspond to the image storage unit. Applicable.

First, the CPU 22 acquires information about the user's fatigue state (step S101). As information on the fatigue state, the heart rate acquired by the biological sensor as described above can be cited as an example. Based on this information, the CPU 22 determines whether the user has fatigue symptoms (step S102). And when it determines with there being no symptom of fatigue (step S102; No), CPU22 returns a process to step S101 and acquires the information regarding a user's fatigue state continuously.

On the other hand, if it is determined that the user has fatigue symptoms (step S102; Yes), the direction of the camera 300 is determined and a direction control signal is transmitted to the camera direction control device 200 (step S103). In this case, unlike the embodiment, since there is not always a danger zone near the vehicle, the CPU 22 may decide that the direction of the camera 300 is the front of the vehicle. Alternatively, the camera 300 may be directed toward the user and an image of the user's own state may be taken.

Next, the CPU 22 monitors whether there is an abnormality in the vehicle while it is determined that the user has a fatigue symptom or for a predetermined time from the processing in step S102 (step S104). This process is the same as step S4 shown in FIG. When it is determined that there is no abnormality in the vehicle for a predetermined time (step S104; No), the CPU 22 returns to the process of step S101 again to acquire the user's fatigue state. On the other hand, when it is determined that there is an abnormality in the vehicle (step S104; Yes), the CPU 22 performs image data storage processing (step S105) as in step S5 of FIG. With the above processing, even if the driver is in a fatigued state and the probability of accident occurrence is assumed to be high, an image of the driving situation can be acquired appropriately, and if an accident occurs, the video is displayed. It can be photographed accurately and can be used as traffic information for investigating the cause of an accident and preventing accidents.

The present invention can be used for a navigation apparatus installed in a vehicle in which a camera is installed.

Claims

An image acquisition device that is mounted on a moving body and electromagnetically connected to a camera direction control device that controls a shooting direction by a camera, and acquires an image shot by the camera,
A danger information acquisition means for acquiring danger information, which is information relating to a dangerous state;
Direction control means for transmitting a direction control signal of the camera to the camera direction control device based on the danger information acquired by the danger information acquisition means;
An image acquisition apparatus comprising:
The danger information is information relating to a danger zone,
2. The image acquisition according to claim 1, wherein the direction control unit determines whether the danger zone is in the vicinity, and transmits the direction control signal when it is determined that the danger zone is in the vicinity. apparatus.
3. The image acquisition apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the direction control signal is a signal for controlling the camera to face the danger zone.
The image acquisition apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the direction control means considers that the danger zone is in front of the moving direction of the moving body.
The image acquisition device according to claim 4, wherein the direction control signal is a signal that limits a movable range of the camera direction control device so that an imaging range includes at least the danger zone. .
6. The image acquisition apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the direction control signal limits the movable range to at least a range within half of the camera angle of view from the direction of the danger zone.
The danger information acquisition means acquires the fatigue state of the user as danger information,
The image acquisition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the direction control unit controls the camera to face the front of the moving body when a degree of the fatigue state is a predetermined level or more.
The image acquisition device is mounted on the vehicle,
The said danger information acquisition means measures the degree of wobbling of the said vehicle from the relative position of the white line in the image acquired from the said camera, and acquires the degree of wobbling as danger information. Image acquisition device.
The image acquisition device is mounted on the vehicle,
When detecting an abnormality of the vehicle, further comprising an image storage means for storing an image captured by the camera,
9. The image storage unit according to claim 1, wherein the image storage unit stores image data before a first time for detecting the abnormality and image data from the abnormality detection to a second time later. The image acquisition device according to item.
10. The image acquisition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the direction control unit stops transmission of a user operation signal to the camera direction control apparatus during photographing in a dangerous state.
A method for controlling an image acquisition device that is mounted on a moving body and electromagnetically connected to a camera direction control device that controls a shooting direction by a camera and acquires an image captured by the camera,
A hazard information acquisition process for acquiring hazard information, which is information related to the dangerous state,
A direction control step of transmitting a direction control signal of the camera to the camera direction control device based on the danger information acquired by the danger information acquisition means;
An image acquisition apparatus control method comprising:
An image acquisition program that is mounted on a moving body and electromagnetically connected to a camera direction control device that controls a shooting direction by a camera and executed by an image acquisition device that acquires an image captured by the camera,
A danger information acquisition means for acquiring danger information, which is information relating to a dangerous state;
Direction control means for transmitting a direction control signal of the camera to the camera direction control device based on the danger information acquired by the danger information acquisition means;
An image acquisition program comprising:
A storage medium storing the image acquisition program according to claim 12.