Denso Corporation

Toshikazu Murao

Takayuki Kimura

Kazuyoshi Akiba

Kentarou Shiota

Kazuhiko Kobayashi

Naoki Sugiyama

Syo Okuda

Tetsuya Kimata

Noriaki Shirai

Nobuhisa Shimizu

Masato Nishikawa

Yuzuru Koshisaka

To reduce complication of a configuration of a vehicle while suppressing an increase in weight of the vehicle, a camera system mounted on a vehicle includes an imaging unit to capture multiple frame images of an outside of the vehicle per cycle and an image processor to obtain the multiple frame images from the imaging unit and separate the multiple frame images into a first given number of frame images as a recognition target and a second given number of frame images as a storage target to be stored in an image recorder. The image processor separately outputs the first and second given numbers of frame images to be recognized and stored, respectively.

Camera system, event recording system and event recording method

A first tone curve referred to in generating an image recognition processing signal as an image output signal for image recognition processing and a second tone curve referred to in generating a visual recognition signal as an image output signal for visual recognition are separately generated. The second tone curve for visual recognition is generated by connecting a dark control point, which is a control point specified in a luminance-pixel value coordinate system corresponding to the lowest luminance portion in a luminance histogram, a light control point, which is a control point specified in the luminance-pixel value coordinate system corresponding to the highest luminance portion in the luminance histogram, and an intermediate control point, which is a control point specified in the luminance-pixel value coordinate system corresponding to an intermediate luminance portion in the luminance histogram.

Image signal processing system, method, and program

An imaging system to be mounted in a vehicle is provided. The imaging system includes an optical wide-angle camera acquiring an image, and an object identifying apparatus. This object identifying apparatus executes a distortion correcting process with the acquired image and apply previously-prepared reference patterns to the image which has been subjected to the distortion correcting process such that objects in the acquired image are recognized.

Imaging system and object identifying apparatus to be mounted in vehicle, and object identifying method to be employed by vehicle

An exposure control device includes a feature quantity calculation section, a priority setting section, and a control amount calculation section. The feature quantity calculation section calculates feature quantities of a plurality of pixels in a frame image acquired by the imaging section which are different from luminance values. The priority setting section sets priority in accordance with the feature quantities so that the luminance value(s) of one or more pixels with high feature quantities calculated by the feature quantity calculation section are preferentially used to calculate an exposure control amount. The control amount calculation section calculates the exposure control amount based on the luminance values of the pixels and the priority set by the priority setting section.

Exposure control device, exposure control method, and storage medium

In a vehicular camera, an image generation unit generates at least one image of a directional view from a vehicle, and an object recognition unit recognizes a target object in the at least one image. A region identification unit identifies, in the at least one image, a specific region in the target object recognized by the object recognition unit. A vehicle control unit performs a vehicle control task based on the recognized target object. A mosaic unit identifies a specific region in the at least one image corresponding to the specific region in the at least one image, and performs a mosaic task to thereby blur a mosaic region in the second image. The mosaic region includes at least the specific region in the at least one image.

Vehicular camera and camera system

In an autonomous driving control apparatus, a drive control unit determines, based on first and second images respectively captured by first and second cameras and an autonomous driving condition, a value of at least one controlled variable for autonomous driving of a vehicle, and outputs, to a vehicle control unit, the value of the at least one controlled variable to thereby cause the vehicle control unit to carry out a task of autonomously driving the vehicle. A camera monitor unit determines whether at least one of the first and second cameras has malfunctioned. The camera monitor unit limits, based on the at least one of the first and second directional regions corresponding to the at least of the first and second cameras, the autonomous driving condition when determining that the at least one of the first and second cameras has malfunctioned.

Autonomous driving control apparatus and program product

A camera system includes: a first imaging element; a second imaging element different from the first imaging element; an oscillator for supplying a clock signal to the first imaging element and the second imaging element; and a controller that controls an operation of the first imaging element and an operation of the second imaging element, and acquires image signals outputted by the first imaging element and the second imaging element. The controller synchronizes and outputs image data of a first region, which is a part of an effective pixel region of the first imaging element, and image data of a second region, which is a part or a whole of an effective pixel region of the second imaging element.

Camera system

An image sensor includes a plurality of optical filters, a plurality of transmissive members, an imaging section, and a signal processing section. The optical filters transmit visible rays having a wavelength enabling visual recognition of a primary color, and the transmissive members transmit infrared rays. A plurality of imaging elements of the imaging section are constituted by a plurality of groups. Each of the imaging elements includes optical filters or transmissive members. The signal processing section determines the luminance of each pixel of a produced image, based on measurement values measured by the imaging elements of a group corresponding to the pixel. At least one imaging element of each group is provided with a transmissive member, and the remaining one or more imaging elements are provided with the optical filters having no color or a primary color allocated to the group.

Image sensor

A control apparatus acquires a captured image from a camera including an imaging unit, including an image sensor, that generates the captured image. A control unit is provided in the control apparatus and executes, using a processor, a process based on the captured image. The control apparatus receives input of an abnormality signal indicating an abnormality in the imaging unit detected by the camera. When the input of the abnormality signal is received, the control unit performs a process to handle the abnormality in the imaging unit indicated by the abnormality signal. The abnormality indicated by the abnormality signal is an error that has occurred in setting values stored in a storage means provided in the camera. The setting values are used for signal processing including a pixel defect correction and a noise removal process performed with respect to pixel values of the captured image.

Control apparatus and control system for performing process based on captured image

An in-vehicle camera is provide which has a case and a lens, and which is attached in a vehicle interior so that the lens is exposed at a top face of the case and the top face is opposed to a windshield or another window. The top face has an angular shape bent at a ridge line passing through the top face. The lens is positioned in the vicinity of the ridge line. The in-vehicle camera includes a hood attached to a front portion of the case, the front portion being positioned at a front side of the case with respect to the lens.

In-vehicle camera and vehicle control system

An on-board camera apparatus includes a camera module, a control circuit board, a housing, a bracket, and a hood. The housing houses the camera module and the control circuit board. The bracket fixes the housing to a front windshield of the own vehicle. The hood is arranged so as to cover the camera module. The camera module captures an image of an area ahead of an own vehicle. As captured images, the camera module generates a plurality of linear images in which a relationship between luminance and an output pixel value is fixed. Based on the linear images, the camera module further generates high dynamic range images in which a relationship between luminance and an output pixel value differs depending on a luminance region, under a predetermined imaging mode. The control circuit board enables a plurality of types of driving-related processes based on the captured images to be performed.

On-board camera apparatus

An imaging device performs imaging using an imaging element. The imaging device is provided with an imaging unit, a control unit and a synthesis unit. The imaging unit performs exposure with a predetermined exposure time, thereby performing image capture. The control unit successively performs an imaging process N-times. In each imaging process, a plurality of images are captured with different exposure times. The synthesis unit generates, using HDR rendering, a plurality of images acquired by the plurality of image captures. The control unit performs one of the plurality of image captures such that the exposure is completed at a corresponding synchronous timing, and performs a subsequent other image capture such that exposure is started at the synchronous timing.

Imaging device provided with high dynamic range rendering function

In an image generation apparatus, an image of a periphery of an own vehicle is captured using an imaging operation of a camera mounted in the own vehicle in a first state that is suitable for capturing an image for recognizing information illustrated on a display board, at a predetermined first timing, and a first captured image is generated from the image captured in the first state. An image of the periphery of the own vehicle is captured using an imaging operation of the camera in a second state that is suitable for capturing an image for recognizing information displayed by light emitted from an electronic display apparatus, at a predetermined second timing, and a second captured image is generated from the image captured in the second state. A process using the first captured image and the second captured image is performed.

Growing community of inventors

Kariya, Japan

Toshikazu Murao