Vehicular camera monitoring system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10793068-B2
Application number	US-201715442814-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 27, 2017
Priority date	Aug 9, 2007
Publication date	Oct 6, 2020
Grant date	Oct 6, 2020

Abstract

A camera monitoring system for a vehicle includes an interior rearview mirror assembly with a video display screen disposed behind the interior mirror reflective element. The video display screen is operable to display video images derived at least in part from image data captured by at least one video camera of a plurality of video cameras of the equipped vehicle. Image data captured by at least a driver-side viewing video camera and a passenger-side viewing video camera is provided to an image processor and is processed by the image processor to detect vehicles present exterior of the equipped vehicle. Responsive at least in part to detection of another vehicle, video images derived at least in part from image data captured by the driver-side viewing video camera, a rear viewing video camera and/or the passenger-side viewing video camera are displayed by the video display screen.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A camera monitoring system for a vehicle, said camera monitoring system comprising:
an interior rearview mirror assembly configured for mounting at an interior portion of a vehicle equipped with said camera monitoring system;
said interior rearview mirror assembly comprising an interior mirror reflective element having a front side and a rear side;
wherein, when said interior rearview mirror assembly is mounted at the interior portion of the equipped vehicle, the front side of the interior mirror reflective element is closer to a driver of the equipped vehicle who views the interior mirror reflective element than is the rear side of the interior mirror reflective element;
wherein a video display screen is disposed behind the rear side of the interior mirror reflective element;
wherein the interior mirror reflective element comprises a transflective mirror reflector that is partially transmissive and partially reflective, so that light emanating from the video display screen disposed behind the rear side of the interior mirror reflective element when the video display screen is activated to display video images is transmitted through the transflective mirror reflector of the interior mirror reflective element;
wherein the transflective mirror reflector is viewable by the driver of the equipped vehicle when viewing the interior mirror reflective element;
wherein the video display screen disposed behind the rear side of the interior mirror reflective element physically encompasses the entirety of the transflective mirror reflector that is viewable by the driver of the equipped vehicle when viewing the interior mirror reflective element;
wherein, when the video display screen is not activated to display video images, the presence of the video display screen disposed behind the rear side of the interior mirror reflective element is covert to the driver of the equipped vehicle viewing the interior mirror reflective element;
wherein the video display screen is operable to display video images derived at least in part from image data captured by at least one video camera of a plurality of video cameras of the equipped vehicle;
wherein said plurality of video cameras comprises at least (i) a driver-side viewing video camera disposed in a driver-side exterior mirror assembly that is attached at a driver-side portion of the equipped vehicle, said driver-side viewing video camera having a field of view at least rearward and sideward of the equipped vehicle and operable to capture image data, (ii) a rear viewing video camera that is attached at a rear portion of the equipped vehicle, said rear viewing video camera having a field of view at least rearward of the equipped vehicle and operable to capture image data, and (iii) a passenger-side viewing video camera disposed in a passenger-side exterior mirror assembly that is attached at a passenger-side portion of the equipped vehicle, said passenger-side viewing video camera having a field of view at least rearward and sideward of the equipped vehicle and operable to capture image data;
wherein at least said driver-side viewing video camera and said passenger-side viewing video camera of said plurality of video cameras are components of a camera-based sensing system of the equipped vehicle;
wherein said camera-based sensing system comprises an image processor;
wherein image data captured by at least said driver-side viewing video camera and said passenger-side viewing video camera is provided to said image processor and is processed by said image processor to detect vehicles present exterior of the equipped vehicle;
wherein, responsive at least in part to detection by said camera-based sensing system of a vehicle present exterior of the equipped vehicle, video images derived at least in part from image data captured by at least one of said driver-side viewing video camera, said rear viewing video camera and said passenger-side viewing video camera are displayed by the video display screen disposed behind the rear side of the interior mirror reflective element;
wherein, during a forward driving maneuver of the equipped vehicle, and at least responsive to detection by said camera-based sensing system, via processing by said image processor of image data captured by said driver-side viewing video camera, of a vehicle present at the driver side of the equipped vehicle, said camera monitoring system is operable to display video images derived at least in part from image data captured by at least said driver-side viewing video camera by the video display screen disposed behind the rear side of the interior mirror reflective element;
wherein, during the forward driving maneuver of the equipped vehicle, and at least responsive to detection by said camera-based sensing system, via processing by said image processor of image data captured by said passenger-side viewing video camera, of a vehicle present at the passenger side of the equipped vehicle, said camera monitoring system is operable to display video images derived at least in part from image data captured by at least said passenger-side viewing video camera by the video display screen disposed behind the rear side of the interior mirror reflective element;
wherein, responsive to actuation by the driver of a driver-side turn signal indicator of the vehicle, video images derived at least in part from image data captured by said driver-side viewing video camera are displayed by the video display screen disposed behind the rear side of the interior mirror reflective element; and
wherein, responsive to actuation by the driver of a passenger-side turn signal indicator of the vehicle, video images derived at least in part from image data captured by said passenger-side viewing video camera are displayed by the video display screen disposed behind the rear side of the interior mirror reflective element.

2. The camera monitoring system of claim 1 , wherein, when the equipped vehicle is changing lanes toward a lane at the driver side of the equipped vehicle, video images derived at least in part from image data captured by said driver-side viewing video camera are displayed by the video display screen disposed behind the rear side of the interior mirror reflective element, and wherein, when the equipped vehicle is changing lanes toward a lane at the passenger side of the equipped vehicle, video images derived at least in part from image data captured by said passenger-side viewing video camera are displayed by the video display screen disposed behind the rear side of the interior mirror reflective element.

3. The camera monitoring system of claim 2 , wherein video images derived at least in part from image data captured by said driver-side viewing video camera cease being displayed by the video display screen disposed behind the rear side of the interior mirror reflective element after a period of time, and wherein video images derived at least in part from image data captured by said passenger-side viewing video camera cease being displayed by the video display screen disposed behind the rear side of the interior mirror reflective element after the period of time.

4. The camera monitoring system of claim 1 , wherein video images derived at least in part from image data captured by said driver-side viewing video camera cease being displayed by the video display screen disposed behind the rear side of the interior mirror reflective element after deactuation of the driver-side turn signal indicator, and wherein video images derived at least in part from image data captured by said passenger-side viewing video camera cease being displayed by the video display screen disposed behind the rear side of the interior mirror reflective element after deactuation of the passenger-side turn signal indicator.

5. The camera monito

Assignees

• Donnelly Corp

Inventors

• Foote Keith D
• Benthem Kevin P
• Lynam Niall R

Classifications

• H04N23/63

  by using electronic viewfinders · CPC title

• B60R1/082 Primary

  using a single wide field mirror or an association of rigidly connected mirrors · CPC title

• B60K35/60

  Instruments characterised by their location or relative disposition in or on vehicles (arrangements of lighting devices on dashboards B60Q3/10) · CPC title

• B60K35/28

  characterised by the type of the output information, e.g. video entertainment or vehicle dynamics information; characterised by the purpose of the output information, e.g. for attracting the attention of the driver · CPC title

• B60K35/22

  Display screens · CPC title