The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jul. 10, 2012
Filed:
Nov. 20, 2008
Junya Inada, Nishikamo-gun, JP;
Junya Inada, Nishikamo-gun, JP;
DENSO CORPORATION, Kariya, JP;
Abstract
An apparatus for detecting a gaze direction of a driver is mounted on an automotive vehicle. An image of the driver's face on which infrared rays are incident is reflected on a windshield, and the reflected image is fed into a camera. An outside view entering through the windshield may be subtracted from the image of the driver's face taken into the camera to obtain a clearer image of the driver's face. A gaze direction of the driver is detected by a known method (refer to the Specification) based on the image taken by the camera. A mirror for further reflecting the image reflected on the windshield may be added to the apparatus to position the camera freely in the vehicle. A band-pass filter for allowing only the infrared rays to pass through may be disposed before the camera to suppress an image of outside view entering through the windshield. The gaze direction of the driver is correctly detected without placing the camera in a direct front of the driver.