Vehicular trailer angle detection system for fifth-wheel trailers

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12384295-B2
Application number	US-202217646902-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 4, 2022
Priority date	Jan 5, 2021
Publication date	Aug 12, 2025
Grant date	Aug 12, 2025

Abstract

A vehicular trailer assist system includes a rearward viewing camera viewing a trailer hitched at a fifth wheel hitch at a bed of the vehicle. With the trailer hitched to the vehicle, the vehicular trailer assist system transforms fisheye-view frames of image data captured by the rearward viewing camera into bird's-eye view frames of image data. The vehicular trailer assist system determines the fifth wheel hitch within a transformed bird's-eye view frame of image data. The vehicular trailer assist system warps the transformed bird's-eye view frame of image data, which includes (i) an X-axis that indicates change in a trailer angle of the trailer relative to the vehicle and (ii) a Y-axis that indicates distance from the fifth wheel hitch. The vehicular trailer assist system, using the X-axis of the warped transformed bird's-eye view frame of image data, determines the trailer angle of the trailer relative to the vehicle.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A vehicular trailer assist system, the vehicular trailer assist system comprising:
a rearward viewing camera disposed at a vehicle equipped with the vehicular trailer assist system, the rearward viewing camera viewing at least a portion of a trailer hitched at a fifth wheel hitch at a bed of the vehicle, wherein the rearward viewing camera captures fisheye-view frames of image data;
wherein the rearward viewing camera comprises a CMOS imaging array having at least one million photosensors arranged in rows and columns;
an electronic control unit (ECU) comprising electronic circuitry and associated software, wherein the electronic circuitry comprises an image processor operable to process fisheye-view frames of image data captured by the rearward viewing camera;
wherein, with the trailer hitched to the fifth wheel hitch at the bed of the vehicle, the vehicular trailer assist system, via image processing at the ECU of fisheye-view frames of image data captured by the rearward viewing camera, transforms frames of image data captured by the rearward viewing camera from fisheye-view frames of image data into bird's-eye view frames of image data;
wherein the vehicular trailer assist system determines the fifth wheel hitch within the transformed bird's-eye view frames of image data;
wherein, with the trailer hitched to the fifth wheel hitch at the bed of the vehicle, the vehicular trailer assist system warps the transformed bird's-eye view frame of image data, and wherein the warped transformed bird's-eye view frame of image data comprises (i) an X-axis where movement of the trailer within the frame of image data along the X-axis indicates change in trailer angle of the trailer relative to the vehicle and (ii) a Y-axis where position of the trailer within the frame of image data along the Y-axis indicates distance from the fifth wheel hitch; and
wherein the vehicular trailer assist system, using the X-axis of the warped transformed bird's-eye view frame of image data, determines the trailer angle of the trailer relative to the vehicle.

2. The vehicular trailer assist system of claim 1 , wherein the rearward viewing camera is disposed at a center high-mounted stop lamp (CHMSL) of the vehicle.

3. The vehicular trailer assist system of claim 1 , wherein the vehicular trailer assist system warps the transformed bird's-eye view frame of image data based on edges output by a Canny edge detection algorithm.

4. The vehicular trailer assist system of claim 1 , wherein the vehicular trailer assist system determines the trailer angle of the trailer relative to the vehicle using template matching.

5. The vehicular trailer assist system of claim 4 , wherein the vehicular trailer assist system dynamically generates a template during template matching.

6. The vehicular trailer assist system of claim 5 , wherein the vehicular trailer assist system dynamically generates a template during template matching at predetermined intervals of change of the trailer angle.

7. A vehicular trailer assist system, the vehicular trailer assist system comprising:
a rearward viewing camera disposed at a vehicle equipped with the vehicular trailer assist system, the rearward viewing camera viewing at least a portion of a trailer hitched at a fifth wheel hitch at a bed of the vehicle, wherein the rearward viewing camera captures fisheye-view frames of image data;
wherein the rearward viewing camera comprises a CMOS imaging array having at least one million photosensors arranged in rows and columns;
an electronic control unit (ECU) comprising electronic circuitry and associated software, wherein the electronic circuitry comprises an image processor operable to process fisheye-view frames of image data captured by the rearward viewing camera;
wherein, with the trailer hitched to the fifth wheel hitch at the bed of the vehicle, the vehicular trailer assist system, via image processing at the ECU of fisheye-view frames of image data captured by the rearward viewing camera, transforms frames of image data captured by the rearward viewing camera from fisheye-view frames of image data into bird's-eye view frames of image data;
wherein the vehicular trailer assist system determines the fifth wheel hitch within the transformed bird's-eye view frames of image data;
wherein, with the trailer hitched to the fifth wheel hitch at the bed of the vehicle, the vehicular trailer assist system warps the transformed bird's-eye view frame of image data, and wherein the warped transformed bird's-eye view frame of image data comprises (i) an X-axis that indicates change in trailer angle of the trailer relative to the vehicle and (ii) a Y-axis that indicates distance from the fifth wheel hitch;
wherein the vehicular trailer assist system, using the X-axis of the warped transformed bird's-eye view frame of image data, determines the trailer angle of the trailer relative to the vehicle;
wherein the vehicular trailer assist system determines the trailer angle of the trailer relative to the vehicle using template matching;
wherein the vehicular trailer assist system dynamically generates a template during template matching;
wherein the vehicular trailer assist system dynamically generates a template during template matching at predetermined intervals of change of the trailer angle; and
wherein the predetermined intervals of change are each five degrees.

8. A vehicular trailer assist system, the vehicular trailer assist system comprising:
a rearward viewing camera disposed at a vehicle equipped with the vehicular trailer assist system, the rearward viewing camera viewing at least a portion of a trailer hitched at a fifth wheel hitch at a bed of the vehicle, wherein the rearward viewing camera captures fisheye-view frames of image data;
wherein the rearward viewing camera comprises a CMOS imaging array having at least one million photosensors arranged in rows and columns;
an electronic control unit (ECU) comprising electronic circuitry and associated software, wherein the electronic circuitry comprises an image processor operable to process fisheye-view frames of image data captured by the rearward viewing camera;
wherein, with the trailer hitched to the fifth wheel hitch at the bed of the vehicle, the vehicular trailer assist system, via image processing at the ECU of fisheye-view frames of image data captured by the rearward viewing camera, transforms frames of image data captured by the rearward viewing camera from fisheye-view frames of image data into bird's-eye view frames of image data;
wherein the vehicular trailer assist system determines the fifth wheel hitch within the transformed bird's-eye view frames of image data;
wherein, with the trailer hitched to the fifth wheel hitch at the bed of the vehicle, the vehicular trailer assist system warps the transformed bird's-eye view frame of image data, and wherein the warped transformed bird's-eye view frame of image data comprises (i) an X-axis that indicates change in trailer angle of the trailer relative to the vehicle and (ii) a Y-axis that indicates distance from the fifth wheel hitch;
wherein the vehicular trailer assist system, using the X-axis of the warped transformed bird's-eye view frame of image data, determines the trailer angle of the trailer relative to the vehicle;
wherein the vehicular trailer assist system determines the trailer angle of the trailer relative to the vehicle using template matching; and
wherein the vehicular trailer assist system dynamically determines thresholds for the template matching based on at least one selected from the group consisting of (i) a level of brightness in the warped transformed bird's-eye view frame of image data and (ii) a level of contrast in the warped transformed bird's-e

Assignees

• Magna Electronics Inc

Inventors

• Gali Jyothi P
• Joseph Harold E
• Ananthakrishnan Prasanna
• Velichko Alexander
• Shankaranarayanan Guruprasad Mani Iyer

Classifications

• B60R2300/307

  virtually distinguishing relevant parts of a scene from the background of the scene · CPC title

• B60R2300/607

  from a bird's eye viewpoint · CPC title

• B60R2300/80

  characterised by the intended use of the viewing arrangement · CPC title

• B60R2300/105

  using multiple cameras · CPC title

• B60R2300/806

  for aiding parking · CPC title