A forward-facing vision system for a vehicle includes a forward-facing camera disposed in a windshield electronics module attached at a windshield of the vehicle and viewing through the windshield. A control includes a processor that, responsive to processing of captured image data, detects taillights of leading vehicles during nighttime conditions and, responsive to processing of captured image data, detects lane markers on a road being traveled by the vehicle. The control, responsive to lane marker detection and a determination that the vehicle is drifting out of a traffic lane, may control a steering system of the vehicle to mitigate such drifting, with the steering system manually controllable by a driver of the vehicle irrespective of control by the control. The processor, based at least in part on detection of lane markers via processing of captured image data, determines curvature of the road being traveled by the vehicle.

Vision system for vehicle

A vehicular vision system includes a camera having a lens and a CMOS photosensor array having a plurality of photosensor elements. The camera is disposed at an interior portion of a vehicle equipped with the vehicular vision system. The camera one of (i) views exterior of the equipped vehicle through the windshield of the equipped vehicle and forward of the equipped vehicle and (ii) views from the windshield of the equipped vehicle into the interior cabin of the equipped vehicle. A control includes an image processor that processes image data captured by the photosensor array. The image processor processes captured image data to detect an object viewed by the camera. The photosensor array is operable at a plurality of exposure periods and at least one exposure period of the plurality of exposure periods is dynamically variable.

Vehicular vision system

A memory cell array has a first and a second storage area. The first storage area has a memory elements selected by an address signal. The second storage area has a memory elements selected by a control signal. A control circuit has a fuse element. When the fuse element has been blown, the control circuit inhibits at least one of writing and erasing from being done on the second storage area.

Nonvolatile Semiconductor Memory Device

A driver assistance system for a vehicle includes an imaging device having a field of view forward of a vehicle and in a direction of travel of the equipped vehicle, an image processor operable to process image data captured by the imaging device, and a global positioning system operable to determine a geographical location of the vehicle. The equipped vehicle includes an adaptive speed control system for controlling the speed of the equipped vehicle. The adaptive speed control system may reduce the speed of the equipped vehicle responsive at least in part to a detection of a curve in the road ahead of the equipped vehicle via processing by the image processor of image data captured by the imaging device.

Driver assistance system for vehicle

An automatic steering system for a vehicle is provided which includes a memory section for storing data for a steering angle of a wheel with respect to a distance of movement of a vehicle in correspondence to four parking modes. If a desired parking mode is selected by a mode selecting switch and the vehicle is moved at a creep while depressing a brake pedal, a control section controls the operation of a steering actuator to perform automatic parking control. At this time, an object detector continuously detects the position of an object around or in the vicinity of the subject vehicle, and when there is an obstacle already existing within a locus of movement of the subject vehicle, or when there is a possibility that a moving obstacle may enter into the locus of movement of the subject vehicle, a warning is provided to a driver, and an automatic brake is operated. Thus, it is possible to reliably perform the automatic parking control when there is an obstacle.

Automatic steering system for vehicle

PURPOSE:To prevent erroneous operation and permit safe drive by detecting the position, intensity, and dimension, etc. of the headlight of an oncoming car by a two-dimensional image sensor or a sensor for detecting the position of an optical point and automatically switching the headlight. CONSTITUTION:The light sent from the headlight 10 of an oncoming car is inputted into a sensor 12 and forms an image of the headlight 10 on a lens 11. Since the output of a two-dimensional image sensor 12 is outputted so as to scan the image in serial, the position of the image can be detected by counting the scanning pulses from the start point of the picture surface, and further the data such as the dimension and brightness of the image are temporarily memorized into a memory device 13, and then reading-processed by a computer 14 successively. Therefore, it is judged that the image is that due to the headlight of the oncoming car or not or the oncoming car is near or far, and then the hedlight is automatically switched from a filament 3 for upward beam to a filament 4 for passing-each-other beam, and erroneous operation is eliminated, and safe driving is permitted.

Automatic switching apparatus for headlight of car

PURPOSE:To obtain an intersection information communication equipment capable of reducing the size of vehicles side device and capable of easily recognizing necessary information for a driver in a short period of time. CONSTITUTION:The intersection information communication equipment is provided with an image pickup means 4 for photographing the traffic condition of an intersection as images G from plural directions, a controller 5 for outputting the 1st and 2nd picture signal G1, G2 coded for transmitting use by performing of information dividing processing of the image, 1st transmitter 31 installed in the 1st information communication area near from the intersection to transmit the 1st image signal, a 2nd transmitter 32 installed in the 2nd information communication area far from the intersection to transmit the 2nd image signal, a receiver mounted on a vehicle traveling on a road and receiving transmission signals J from the 1st and 2nd transmitters 31, 32, a display control device mounted on the vehicle to demodulate a receiving signal from the receiver to made into image, and a display device mounted on the vehicle to display the receiving signal made into image by the display control device.

Intersection information communication equipment

PURPOSE:To simplify the garaging operation, by arranging a distance sensor for detecting front and rear views of a vehicle, a steering wheel angle sensor for detecting the direction thereof and a computer for computing a running path based on output signals from both of the sensors. CONSTITUTION:A distance sensor 1 is of an optical type and light emitted from a light emitting element 7 is stopped down with a lens 8, scattered on an obstacle 9 and an image of the obstacle 9 is made to form on a light receiving element 11 through a lens 10. Depending on the segment on which the spot of light forms an image from the element 7 when the light hits the obstacle 9, a distance is computed with a control unit 12 using the theory of triangulation. With such an arrangement, a scanning is performed with the sensor 1 mechanically by 150 deg. to detect the obstacle 9 whereby the expanse of the obstacle 9 and the distance thereto 9 can be detected. The direction of a vehicle is detected with a steering wheel angle sensor 2 to calculate an estimated pat with a computer 4 and the results are displayed 5. An alarm 6 is given when the positional difference between the estimated path and the obstacle 9 decrease to a value within 25cm, for example.

Aid system for garaging automobile

PURPOSE:To determine a proper target vehicle-to-vehicle distance for vehicles and enable a safe vehicle group travel with small hunting by providing a means which measures acceleration/deceleration response characteristics of vehicles and setting a reference target vehicle-to-vehicle distance according to the response characteristics CONSTITUTION:A speed controller 1 inputs the acceleration or deceleration alphap of a precedent vehicle, a target vehicle distance XD, a vehicle distance Xi and a vehicle distance deviation Xr measured by a vehicle distance sensor 4, and a relative speed Vr measured by a relative speed sensor 3 A vehicle driving part 2 inputs the output of the speed controller 1 and a disturbance Then the output speed Vi of the vehicle driving part 2 is fed back to the speed controller 1 by the relative speed sensor 3 and converted by an integration element (1/S) 8 into a vehicle distance Xi, which is fed back by a vehicle distance sensor 4 to perform control so that the vehicle distance deviation Xr becomes zero Consequently, the safe vehicle group travel having small hunting and a follow-up travel are enabled

Controller of vehicle group travel system

PURPOSE:To obtain an image processing device which can electrically compensate the amount of deviation of the light axis of a stereo camera, realize cost down, at the same time, allows adjustment to be made easily, and uses the stereo camera which less changes with time and has a high reliability. CONSTITUTION:The device is provided with a stereo camera 100 with a pair of video optical systems and an image processing device 200 for processing a pair of image signals G obtained from the stereo camera 100. The stereo camera 100 is provided with a means 6 for storing the amount of deviation for storing the amount of deviation (i, j) of the light axis in horizontal and up/down directions for light reception elements 2 inside the video optical system. The image processing device 200 is provided with an image memory 7 for storing a pair of image signals obtained from the stereo camera 100 and a means for compensating the amount of deviation by operating the address of the image signal on the image memory 7 according to the amount of deviation.

Kajiwara Yasunari

Papers

Automatic switching apparatus for headlight of car

Intersection information communication equipment

Aid system for garaging automobile

Controller of vehicle group travel system

Image processing device using stereo camera