Vehicular display apparatus, vehicular display method, and vehicular display program

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9649980-B2
Application number	US-201314401305-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 5, 2013
Priority date	May 18, 2012
Publication date	May 16, 2017
Grant date	May 16, 2017

Abstract

Captured images obtained beforehand by imaging ranges corresponding to peripheries of a vehicle, or processed images generated to correspond to the captured images are stored to be associated with stored road information of a preset area. A superimposed area having a clarity lower than a preset clarity threshold is set in a captured image of a periphery of the vehicle. A superimposition image is extracted among the stored images, the superimposition image being an image of a range corresponding to the captured image. A superimposed image is generated by superimposing an image in an area in the extracted superimposition image corresponding to the superimposed area on the captured mage. A video generated from the superimposed image is displayed at a position visible from a driver.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A vehicular display apparatus comprising:
a map data storage in which road information of a preset area is stored;
a superimposition image information storage in which first images which are at least one of captured images obtained beforehand by imaging ranges corresponding to a periphery of a vehicle or processed images generated to correspond to the captured images are stored to be associated with the road information stored in the map data storage;
a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver configured to detect a position of the vehicle;
a compass configured to detect a travel direction of the vehicle;
a camera configured to capture a second image of the periphery of the vehicle; and
a computer system programmed to:
set a superimposed area having a clarity lower than a preset clarity threshold in the second image captured by the camera, wherein the superimposed area having the clarity lower than the preset clarity threshold includes blocked up shadows and blown out highlights;
extract a superimposition image on a basis of the position of the vehicle detected by the GPS, the travel direction of the vehicle detected by the compass, and the road information stored in the map data storage, from among the first images captured before the camera captures the second image and stored in the superimposition image information storage, the superimposition image being an image of a range corresponding to the second image captured by the camera; and
generate a superimposed image, by superimposing a portion of the extracted superimposition image corresponding to the set superimposed area on the second image captured by the camera; and

an image display unit configured to display a video generated from the generated superimposed image at a position visible to a driver of the vehicle.

2. The vehicular display apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the computer system is programmed to detect a low gradation area where a gradation is lower than a preset gradation threshold, in the second image captured by the camera, and to set the detected low gradation area as the superimposed area.

3. The vehicular display apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the computer system is programmed to, when there is a feature specific to a road in the set superimposed area, generate the superimposed image in which there is only an image indicating the feature included in the extracted superimposition image, in an area where the feature lies in the second image captured by the camera.

4. The vehicular display apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the computer system is programmed to, when there is a road structure in the set superimposed area, generate the superimposed image in which, in the area where the road structure lies in the second image captured by the camera, a superimposition degree of the extracted superimposition image on the second image captured by the camera is set to a degree proportional to a contrast of the second image captured by the camera.

5. The vehicular display apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the computer system is programmed to generate the superimposed image in which the superimposition degree of the extracted superimposition image on the second image captured by the camera increases from a lower part to an upper part in a screen on which the image display unit displays the video.

6. The vehicular display apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the computer system is programmed to generate the superimposed image in which the superimposition degree of the extracted superimposition image on the second image captured by the camera increases from an area indicating a position closer to the camera to another area indicating another position farther from the camera in the superimposed image.

7. The vehicular display apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the computer system is programmed to, when there is another vehicle which is expected to move into a course of the vehicle in the second image captured by the camera, generate the superimposed image in which a superimposition degree of the extracted superimposition image on the second image captured by the camera in an area where the another vehicle lies in the second image captured by the camera is less than another superimposition degree in another area other than the area where the another vehicle lies.

8. The vehicular display apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a covered area detection unit configured to detect a covered area in the second image captured by the camera, in the covered area, a road structure and a feature specific to a road included in the road information stored in the map data being covered with a cover,
wherein, the computer system is programmed to extract a covered object image from the first images stored in the superimposition image information storage, the covered object image being an image of the road structure and the feature specific to the road being covered with the cover in the covered area detected by the covered area detection unit, and
the computer system is programmed to generate the superimposed image by superimposing a covered object image and subjected to transparent processing, on the second image captured by the camera in the covered area detected by the covered area detection unit.

9. The vehicular display apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
an infrared image capture unit configured to capture an infrared image of the periphery of the vehicle; and
a superimposition image coloring process unit configured to refer to an outline in the infrared image captured by the infrared image capture unit and a color displayed in the second image captured by the camera to color the extracted superimposition image.

10. The vehicular display apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a superimposition image coloring process unit configured to refer to a color displayed in the second image captured by the camera to color the extracted superimposition image.

11. The vehicular display apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a driver authentication unit configured to authenticate the driver of the vehicle,
wherein the road information is stored in the map data storage to be individually associated with the driver authenticated by the driver authentication unit.

12. A vehicular display apparatus comprising:
a superimposition image information storage in which road positions preset on a road and first images captured at the road positions, respectively, are stored beforehand to be associated with each other;
a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver configured to detect a position of a vehicle;
a compass configured to detect a travel direction of the vehicle;
a camera configured to capture a normal image, which is an image in the travel direction of the vehicle detected by the compass; and
a computer system programmed to extract a superimposition area section from a superimposition image, the superimposition image being an image of a range corresponding to the normal image captured by the camera among the images captured before the camera captures the normal image and stored in the superimposition image information storage, the superimposition area section corresponding to an unclear area in the normal image captured by the camera where a clarity is lower than a preset clarity threshold, to generate a superimposed image by superimposing the extracted superimposition area section on the unclear area in the normal image, wherein the superimposition area section having the clarity lower than the preset clarity threshold includes blocked up shadows and blown out highlights; and
an image display unit configure

Assignees

• Nissan Motor

Inventors

• Watanabe Seigo
• Kishi Norimasa
• Yanagi Takura
• Takamatsu Yoshiro

Classifications

• G08G1/09626

  where the origin of the information is within the own vehicle, e.g. a local storage device, digital map · CPC title

• H04N7/18

  Closed-circuit television [CCTV] systems, i.e. systems in which the video signal is not broadcast · CPC title

• G06T11/00

  Two-dimensional [2D] image generation · CPC title

• G06T2207/10048

  Infrared image · CPC title

• B60R1/00 Primary

  Optical viewing arrangements; Real-time viewing arrangements for drivers or passengers using optical image capturing systems, e.g. cameras or video systems specially adapted for use in or on vehicles · CPC title