Koito Manufacturing Company, Ltd.

Panasonic Corporation

Koito Manufacturing., Ltd.

Masayasu Ito

Hitoshi Takeda

Takanori Namba

Takao Muramatsu

Fuminori Shiotsu

Kentarou Murakami

Hiroki Ishibashi

Shinji Ohta

Mitsuharu Mano

Takayoshi Kitagawa

Akihiro Mochizuki

Kentaro Murakami

Satoshi Kikuchi

Tomoyuki Ichikawa

Osamu Endo

Shuji Matsuura

Satoshi Yamamura

Tsukasa Tokida

Yusuke Kasaba

Akihiro Matsumoto

Toru Nakayama

Yasushi Noyori

Toshiyuki Tsuchiya

Yoshihiro Uchiyama

Kazuki Saito

Atsushi Toda

Hiroyuki Ishida

Naoki Tatara

Hidetada Tanaka

Mikio Motomori

Yuta Maruyama

Seiichiro Yagi

Masaru Sasaki

Daijiro Arisawa

Shogo Sugimori

Tomokazu Suzuki

Soichi Yagi

Tomoaki Serizawa

Tadayuki Okuda

Jun Yabuzaki

Shohei Yanagizu

Yuji Higashi

Kazuhito Iwaki

Kouichi Isobe

Takeshi Toda

Kimiaki Ishikawa

Taketoshi Fujigaya

Syouhei Yanagidu

Tsuchiya Toshiyuki

Syouhei Yanagizu

Noriyuki Nakamura

Michio Arai

Hiroshi Takeda

Toda Takeshi

Shouhei Yanagidu

A vehicle detecting device includes a region setting unit that sets a plurality of regions of interest having different ranges on image data acquired from an image capturing device that captures an image of a space in front of a host vehicle; and a vehicle determining unit that determines, for each of the regions of interest, presence of a front vehicle based on a luminous point present in the region and that executes a determination at different frequencies in the respective regions of interest.

Vehicle detecting device and vehicle lamp system

An image acquiring apparatus for a vehicle includes a light emitting unit configured to emit pulse light to a predetermined direction, an image acquisition unit configured to acquire a plurality of different images of target distance ranges by imaging reflected light returning from the target distance ranges at imaging timings set according to the target distance ranges, and a timing controller configured to control a light emission cycle of the pulse light and the imaging timings. The timing controller is configured to control at least one of the light emission cycle and the imaging timing such that among different target distance ranges, a range of a specific distance necessary for object recognition is imaged with luminance higher than that for ranges other than the range of the specific distance.

Image acquiring apparatus for vehicle, control device, vehicle having image acquiring apparatus for vehicle or control device, and image acquiring method for vehicle

An image acquiring apparatus for a vehicle includes a light emitting unit configured to emit pulse light to a predetermined direction, an image acquisition unit configured to acquire a plurality of different images of target distance ranges by imaging reflected light returning from the target distance ranges at imaging timings set according to the target distance ranges, and a timing controller configured to control a light emission cycle of the pulse light and the imaging timings. The timing controller is configured to set a light emission interval time to be longer than a delay time which is a time from a light emission start time point of the light emitting unit to an imaging start time point of the image acquisition unit and is required to image a longest-distance range of the target distance ranges from which the reflected light can be imaged.

An image acquiring apparatus for a vehicle includes a light emitting unit configured to emit pulse light to a predetermined direction, an image acquisition unit configured to acquire a plurality of different images of target distance ranges by imaging reflected light returning from the target distance ranges at imaging timings set according to the target distance ranges, and a timing controller configured to control a light emission cycle of the pulse light and the imaging timings. The timing controller is configured to control the light emission cycle and the imaging timings such that the light emission cycle and the imaging timings are modulated by random numbers.

A vehicle image acquisition device includes a RGB light source unit having a red light source configured to emit red light, a green light source configured to emit green light, and a blue light source configured to emit blue light, the RGB light source unit being configured to emit respective color light at a predetermined light emission period in a predetermined direction, an image acquisition unit configured to capture reflected light returning from a target distance area at an imaging timing set according to the target distance area, and to acquire a plurality of captured images having different target distance areas, a timing controller configured to control light emission period of the respective color light and the imaging timing; and an image processor configured to combine the captured images each acquired by the respective color light to generate a color image.

Image acquisition device to be used by vehicle and vehicle provided with same

A blade receives light emitted from a light source and repeats a predetermined periodic motion to scan the front of a vehicle with reflected light of the emitted light. A position detector generates a position detection signal Sindicating a timing at which a predetermined reference point of the blade passes a predetermined position. Based on the position detection signal S, a period calculator calculates a period Tp of the periodic motion of the blade. A light intensity calculator receives light-distribution-pattern information Sto be formed in front of the vehicle and calculates light intensity to be generated by the light source at each time based on the position detection signal Sand the period Tp. A driver turns on a semiconductor light source so as to obtain the light intensity calculated by the light intensity calculator at each time.

Lighting circuit and vehicular lighting device

A first light source illuminates a first region. A second light source is configured to provide lower luminance than that of the first light source. The second light source illuminates a second region that overlaps the first region, and that has a larger area than that of the first region. A lighting circuit drives the first light source and the second light source according to a common lighting instruction. The lighting circuit gradually turns on the first light source and the second light source with different gradual changing time periods in response to the lighting instruction.

Vehicular lighting device

There is provided a lighting circuit configured to drive a light emitting unit including a first light source and a second light source connected in series. The lighting circuit includes a first pin connected to one end of the first light source, a second pin connected to a connection node of the first light source and the second light source, a third pin connected to one end of the second light source, a drive circuit configured to supply a drive current to the light emitting unit, a bypass switch provided between the second pin and the third pin, a first resistor provided in parallel with the bypass switch between the second pin and the third pin, and an abnormality detection circuit configured to detect abnormality based on a detection voltage generated between the second pin and the third pin when an ON signal is applied to the bypass switch.

Lighting circuit and vehicle lamp

A vehicle lamp system includes a camera which generates image information in a front region, a controller which generates a light distribution command for instructing a light distribution pattern based on the image information, a headlight which irradiates the front region such that the instructed light distribution pattern is obtained, and a position calibrator which detects a positional deviation between the camera and the headlight. The position calibrator detects a reference object based on the image information and measures a luminance of the reference object, and when there is a certain difference between a luminance of the reference object obtained from one light distribution pattern and a luminance of the reference object obtained from another light distribution pattern in which a light quantity of only a part is different from the one light distribution pattern, detects the positional deviation using a position of the part.

Vehicle lamp system

There is provided a driving device which is used together with a light source including a plurality of light emitting units connected in series to configure a vehicle lamp. The driving device includes a current source which is configure to supply a drive current to the light source, and N bypass circuits which are provided in parallel to N light emitting units, respectively. Each of the bypass circuits includes a bypass transistor which is provided in parallel to a corresponding light emitting unit, a feedback capacitor which is provided between a gate and a drain of the bypass transistor, and a gate drive circuit which is configured to supply a drive voltage between the gate and a source of the bypass transistor according to a control signal.

Vehicle lamp and vehicle lamp driving device

The present disclosure provides a vehicular lamp including bypass circuits parallel to light emitting devices to precisely cope with an abnormality of the bypass circuit side. The vehicular lamp includes: one or more bypass units connected in parallel to at least a part of a plurality of light emitting devices to form a bypass route of the emission driving current so that the light emitting device is turned OFF according to a bypass control signal, or to cut off the bypass route; abnormality detecting units configured to generate state signals each of which indicates an normal state or an abnormal state of each of the bypass units; and a control unit configured to control the formation of the bypass route. When the generated state signal indicates that each of the bypass units is abnormal, supply of the emission driving current from the light source power supply is reduced or stopped.

Vehicular lamp

A semiconductor light source control device includes a driver circuit, which generates a drive current Iout flowing through a plurality of LEDs connected in series and which performs control such that the amount of the drive current is brought close to a target value, and bypass switches, which are on-off controlled by a control signal, the bypass switches being connected in parallel with the corresponding LEDs. The semiconductor light source control device is configured such that when the control signal indicates the off-state of the bypass switches, a voltage across the corresponding LEDs is clamped at an upper limit by using the bypass switches.

Light source control device

A semiconductor light source lighting circuit is provided with: a switching regulator that generates a drive current of a semiconductor light source using a switching element; and a control circuit that controls ON/OFF of the switching element. The control circuit is provided with: a comparator that compares the drive current and a target value; a counter that counts a digital value in a count direction determined by a comparison result of the comparator; a digital-analog converter that converts the digital value into an analog signal; and a drive circuit that controls the ON/OFF of the switching element based on the analog signal. The counter counts the digital value at a speed determined by an ON/OFF cycle of the switching element.

Semiconductor light source lighting circuit

A current controllercompares a first coil current Iflowing in an output inductor Lwith a first upper threshold value and a first lower threshold value. A current limitercompares a second coil current Iflowing in an input inductor Lwith a second upper threshold value and a second lower threshold value. A duty controller(i) switches a switching transistor Mbased on the first coil current in a cycle where the first coil current Iexceeds the first upper threshold value before the second coil current I, exceeds the second upper threshold value. According to the current controller, it is possible to stabilize an output current and to limit a current.

Vehicle lamp, driving device thereof, and control method thereof

Disclosed is a light source control device including a power conversion unit and a control unit. The power conversion unit includes a transfer capacitor provided between a primary side circuit and a secondary side circuit. The primary side circuit is configured such that a first inductor stores energy when a first switching element is ON. The secondary side circuit is configured such that the second inductor limits a changing speed of the driving current. The power conversion unit is configured such that the driving current is raised when the first switching element is ON. The control unit turns OFF when the magnitude of the driving current exceeds the first threshold value, and turns ON the first switching element when the magnitude of the driving current falls below the second threshold value smaller than the first threshold value.

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Shizuoka, Japan

Masayasu Ito