Method and device for predictable exposure control of at least one first vehicle camera

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11039078-B2
Application number	US-201816604369-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 7, 2018
Priority date	Sep 1, 2017
Publication date	Jun 15, 2021
Grant date	Jun 15, 2021

Abstract

In a device for predictable exposure control of a vehicle camera, a first vehicle camera has a visual field directed to the side or to the rear, and a second vehicle camera has a visual field directed to the front. A method involves recording second image data from the outer front surroundings by the second vehicle camera, detecting a region having altered brightness within the second image data, determining a required change of an exposure value based on the second image data, to compensate for a brightening or darkening that occurs when the vehicle enters the region having altered brightness, and transmitting the changed exposure value to the first vehicle camera such that, upon entry into the region having altered brightness, the first vehicle camera records first image data based on the changed exposure value.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method of operating a camera system of a vehicle including first and second cameras, wherein the method comprises the steps:
a) with the first camera, capturing first image data from lateral, lateral-rear and/or rear surroundings of the vehicle;
b) with the second camera, capturing second image data from front surroundings of the vehicle;
c) based on the second image data, in the front surroundings of the vehicle detecting a region having a different brightness relative to a region having an initial brightness between the vehicle and the region having the different brightness;
d) based on the second image data, determining an adjusted exposure value to compensate for the different brightness relative to the initial brightness;
e) providing the adjusted exposure value to the first camera; and
f) as the vehicle moves forward, determining a period of time remaining until the first camera is predicted to enter the region having the different brightness, adjusting an exposure setting of the first camera based on the adjusted exposure value, and commencing when the period of time elapses capturing further first image data with the first camera of which the exposure setting has been adjusted based on the adjusted exposure value even when the further first image data captured by the first camera does not yet depict the region having the different brightness.

2. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising obtaining motion data values regarding motion of the vehicle, wherein the determining of the period of time is performed based on the motion data values.

3. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the capturing of the second image data comprises capturing plural successive images of the front surroundings, the detecting of the region having the different brightness comprises scaling the region having the different brightness over the plural successive images, and the determining of the period of time is performed based on a result of the scaling.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the determining of the adjusted exposure value comprises determining local differences in brightness within the second image data between the region having the different brightness and a remainder of the front surroundings captured in the second image data.

5. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the region having the different brightness is a brighter region that is brighter than the region having the initial brightness.

6. A program element that is stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium and that is configured to cause the method according to claim 1 to be performed when the program element is executed on a processor of the camera system.

7. A non-transitory computer-readable medium, on which is stored a program element that, when executed on a processor of the camera system, causes the method according to claim 1 to be performed.

8. A camera system for a vehicle, comprising:
a first camera configured to capture first image data from lateral, lateral-rear and/or rear surroundings of the vehicle;
a second camera configured to capture second image data from front surroundings of the vehicle; and
a processor arrangement configured:
to evaluate the second image data to detect, in the front surroundings of the vehicle, a region having a different brightness relative to a region having an initial brightness between the vehicle and the region having the different brightness,
to determine, based on the second image data, an adjusted exposure value to compensate for the different brightness relative to the initial brightness,
to provide the adjusted exposure value to the first camera,
to determine a period of time remaining until the first camera is predicted to enter the region having the different brightness as the vehicle moves forward,
to cause the first camera to adjust an exposure setting of the first camera based on the adjusted exposure value, and
to cause the first camera, of which the exposure setting has been adjusted based on the adjusted exposure value, to capture further first image data commencing when the period of time elapses even when the further first image data captured by the first camera does not yet depict the region having the different brightness.

9. The camera system according to claim 8 , wherein the first camera is a camera of a camera-based mirror-replacement system of the vehicle.

10. A vehicle comprising a vehicle body and the camera system according to claim 8 mounted on the vehicle body.

Assignees

• Conti Temic Microelectronic Gmbh
• Conti Ternie microelectronic GmbH

Inventors

• Fendt Guenter Anton

Classifications

• H04N23/73 Primary

  by influencing the exposure time · CPC title

• H04N23/70

  Circuitry for compensating brightness variation in the scene · CPC title

• H04N23/90

  Arrangement of cameras or camera modules, e.g. multiple cameras in TV studios or sports stadiums · CPC title

• H04N23/71

  Circuitry for evaluating the brightness variation · CPC title

• G06V20/56

  exterior to a vehicle by using sensors mounted on the vehicle · CPC title