Assembly for a vehicle, lighting unit, vehicle, and vehicle comprising an assembly

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12183089-B2
Application number	US-202017785030-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 23, 2020
Priority date	Dec 13, 2019
Publication date	Dec 31, 2024
Grant date	Dec 31, 2024

Abstract

An arrangement or a projection headlight with a modulator, in particular with a DMD, is disclosed. In this case, a projection lens of the arrangement not only images the image content of the modulator in the surrounding area, but also images the surrounding area on the modulator. The modulator can thus guide the imaging of the surrounding area to a camera and reflect light from a light source into the surrounding area.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An optical arrangement comprising:
a light source that emits light;
a light passage;
a spatial modulator that controls the emitted light received from the light source, wherein the spatial modulator directs the emitted light received from the light source out of the optical arrangement through the light passage;
a camera that captures an image from incident light coming from an object, wherein the incident light enters the optical arrangement from the object through the light passage and then is reflected off the spatial modulator before reaching the camera, where the image is captured from the incident light; and
a controller that controls the spatial modulator, wherein the controller controls the spatial modulator to direct the emitted light through the light passage based on the image captured by the camera.

2. The optical arrangement of claim 1 , wherein the controller uses an image processing algorithm to analyze the image captured by the camera, and wherein the controller controls the spatial modulator based on how the image is analyzed using the image processing algorithm.

3. The optical arrangement of claim 2 , wherein the image processing algorithm is used to analyze image characteristics of the image captured by the camera, and wherein the image characteristics are selected from the group consisting of: edges in the image, structures in the image, and contrast in the image.

4. The optical arrangement of claim 3 , wherein the controller controls the spatial modulator based on the image characteristics.

5. The optical arrangement of claim 1 , wherein the controller controls the spatial modulator based on how edges in the image are analyzed and directs the emitted light through the light passage such that edges in a surrounding area captured by the camera are more brightly illuminated by the emitted light.

6. The optical arrangement of claim 1 , wherein the controller controls the spatial modulator based on how contrast in the image is analyzed and directs the emitted light through the light passage onto a surrounding area captured by the camera such that contrast for an observer is increased.

7. The optical arrangement of claim 1 , wherein the spatial modulator includes a plurality of mirrors, wherein each of the plurality of mirrors is tiltable in both in a first mirror position in which the emitted light is reflected out through the light passage and in a second mirror position in which incident light entering through the light passage is guided towards the camera.

8. The optical arrangement of claim 1 , wherein the spatial modulator includes a plurality of mirrors, wherein each of the plurality of mirrors is independently tiltable, and wherein incident light entering through the light passage that is reflected by one of the plurality of mirrors towards the camera corresponds to a pixel of the image.

9. The optical arrangement of claim 1 , further comprising:
a lens, wherein the lens, the spatial modulator and an image sensor of the camera are arranged in a Scheimpflug configuration.

10. The optical arrangement of claim 1 , wherein the camera includes an image sensor with light-sensitive areas corresponding to pixels of the image, wherein the spatial modulator includes a plurality of mirrors, and wherein incident light entering through the light passage is guided by each of the plurality of mirrors towards a corresponding one of the light-sensitive areas.

11. The optical arrangement of claim 1 , further comprising:
a deflection mirror disposed between the light source and the spatial modulator, wherein emitted light from the light source is reflected by the deflection mirror onto the spatial modulator.

12. The optical arrangement of claim 1 , further comprising:
a deflection mirror disposed between the spatial modulator and the camera, wherein incident light from the light passage that is reflected by the spatial modulator is deflected by the deflection mirror towards the camera.

13. A method of operating an optical arrangement, comprising:
orienting each of a plurality of mirrors of a spatial modulator both in a first mirror position and in a second mirror position, wherein in the first mirror position emitted light from a light source is reflected by the plurality of mirrors out of the optical arrangement through a light passage, and wherein in the second mirror position incident light coming from objects and entering the optical arrangement from the objects through the light passage is then reflected by the plurality of mirrors towards an image sensor of a camera; and
capturing an image from the incident light, wherein the incident light coming from the objects enters the optical arrangement through the light passage and is then reflected by the plurality of mirrors towards the image sensor of the camera, where the image is captured from the incident light, and wherein the emitted light is directed out through the light passage based on the image captured by the camera.

14. The method of claim 13 , further comprising:
analyzing the image captured by the camera using an image processing algorithm to detect edges in the image; and
controlling each of the plurality of mirrors of the spatial modulator in the first mirror position such that edges in a surrounding area captured by the camera are more brightly illuminated.

15. The method of claim 13 , further comprising:
analyzing the image captured by the camera using an image processing algorithm; and
controlling each of the plurality of mirrors of the spatial modulator in the first mirror position based on how the image is analyzed using the image processing algorithm.

16. The method of claim 15 , further comprising:
directing the emitted light through the light passage such that the objects in a surrounding area captured by the camera are more brightly illuminated by the emitted light based on how the objects in the image are analyzed using the image processing algorithm.

17. The method of claim 15 , further comprising:
directing the emitted light through the light passage such that contrast perceived by an observer of a surrounding area captured by the camera is increased based on how contrast in the image is analyzed using the image processing algorithm.

18. The method of claim 13 , wherein the image sensor of the camera includes light-sensitive areas corresponding to pixels of the image captured by the camera, further comprising:
independently orienting each of the plurality of mirrors of the spatial modulator in the second mirror position such that the incident light entering through the light passage is reflected by each of the plurality of mirrors towards one of the light-sensitive areas that corresponds to a pixel of the image.

19. A lamp of a motor vehicle, comprising:
a light source that emits light;
a light passage;
a spatial modulator that controls the emitted light received from the light source, wherein the spatial modulator directs the emitted light received from the light source out of the lamp through the light passage onto a surrounding area of the motor vehicle;
a camera that captures an image from incident light coming from a surrounding area of the motor vehicle, wherein the incident light enters the lamp from the surrounding area through the light passage and then is reflected off the spatial modulator before reaching the camera, where the image is captured from the incident light, wherein the image depicts the surrounding area of the motor vehicle; and
a controller that controls the spatial modulator, wh

Assignees

• Ams OSRAM Automotive Lighting Systems GmbH
• Continental Automotive Tech Gmbh

Inventors

• Pikart Philip
• Gammer Christian
• Kuenecke Jan-Erik
• Dollinger Benjamin

Classifications

• G06T2207/30252

  Vehicle exterior; Vicinity of vehicle · CPC title

• B60Q1/08

  automatically · CPC title

• H04N23/56

  provided with illuminating means · CPC title

• H04N23/74

  by influencing the scene brightness using illuminating means · CPC title

• F21S41/39

  Attachment thereof (achieving variable light distribution by movable reflectors F21S41/675) · CPC title