JP2015014119A - Vehicle door operation apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vehicle rear-door operation apparatus which is easy to use for users.SOLUTION: A vehicle door operation apparatus includes: imaging means arranged in a vehicle and capturing a rear view of the vehicle; person detection means which detects a person on the basis of an image captured by the imaging means; and operation control means which controls operation of a door arranged in a rear part of the vehicle, according to a distance between a person detected by the person detection means and the vehicle.

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle door operating device.

  Two cameras with a horizontal angle of view of 110 degrees are arranged side by side in the vicinity of the upper bumper at the rear of the vehicle, and the horizontal direction is 180 degrees by combining the captured images captured by the two cameras into one image. The above composite image is acquired. Then, the composite image is separated into a rear front image and right and left peripheral images of the left and right parts of the periphery, and the right and left peripheral images are intentionally distorted and deformed compared to the rear front image, thereby reducing An image display control device that provides an image having a depth behind the camera as if looking at a mirror is disclosed (Patent Document 1).

JP 2003-255925 A

  However, for example, when a person stands at the rear of the host vehicle to open a trunk lid or a back door (hereinafter referred to as a door) at the rear of the vehicle, the position of the person and the vehicle is close and the horizontal direction described above It is difficult to detect the person from cameras installed side by side. For this reason, there is a problem that it is impossible to control the operation of the door after detecting a person, which is not convenient.

  The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an operation device for a rear door for a vehicle that is easy to use for a user.

  The present invention detects the person based on the captured image of the imaging means, and controls the operation of the door provided in the rear part of the own vehicle according to the detected distance between the person and the own vehicle. Solve the problem.

  According to the present invention, since the imaging means is installed in the own vehicle so that a person standing in the vicinity of the back of the own vehicle can be recognized from the captured image, the person is detected before operating the rear door. You can open the rear door. As a result, it is possible to provide a vehicle door operation device that is easy to use for the user.

It is a block diagram of the vehicle door operation device concerning an embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the position of the camera of FIG. 1, and is a top view of a vehicle. It is a figure for demonstrating the position of the camera of FIG. 1, and is a side view of a vehicle. It is a figure for demonstrating the position of the display of FIG. 1, and is a figure which shows the circumference | surroundings of the instrumental panel of a vehicle. It is a figure for demonstrating the imaging range of the camera of FIG. 1, and is a side view of a vehicle. It is a figure for demonstrating the movable distance of the rear door of FIG. 3, and is a side view of a vehicle. It is a figure for demonstrating the relationship between a user's standing position and the movable distance of the rear door of FIG. 3, and is a side view of a vehicle. It is a figure for demonstrating the relationship between a user's standing position and the movable distance of the rear door of FIG. 3, and is a side view of a vehicle.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a vehicle door operating device according to an embodiment of the present invention. The vehicle door operation device is mounted on a vehicle. The vehicle door operation device is a device for automatically operating the rear door according to the position of the user standing in the vicinity of the rear door of the vehicle.

  In addition, this example uses a camera that is a part of the configuration of the vehicle door operation device and other cameras to capture the back of the host vehicle and the surroundings of the host vehicle with the camera, and display them on the display. Information about the rear or surrounding of the vehicle is presented to the occupant. In the past, mirrors were installed in the vehicle interior or exterior, and passengers directly viewed the mirrors to obtain information about the rear or surroundings of the vehicle. There was a problem that a blind spot was generated by the pillars of. Therefore, this example solves these problems by using a camera and a display without providing a mirror in the vehicle.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle door operating device according to the present embodiment includes a right side camera 1a, a left side camera 1b, a rear camera 1c, a back camera 1d, a right display 2a, a left display 2b, a central display 2c, and a rear door. 3 and a controller 10. Each of these devices is connected by a CAN (Controller Area Network) or other in-vehicle LAN, and can transmit or receive information. The right display 2a, the left display 2b, and the central display 2c are not necessarily provided in the vehicle door operation device. In addition, since the vehicle in a present Example assumes a hatchback type vehicle and the opening-and-closing member of a vehicle rear part is called a back door, it describes as the rear door 3, but it is the same also with the trunk lid in vehicles, such as a sedan type and a coupe type. These back doors and trunk lids are called doors.

  The right side camera 1a, the left side camera 1b, and the rear camera 1c are cameras that capture the rear of the host vehicle in order to acquire information behind the host vehicle. The back camera 1d is a camera that images the back of the host vehicle in order to acquire information about the back of the host vehicle (in the vicinity of the host vehicle). The cameras 1a to 1c are provided at positions higher than the camera 1d with respect to the ground surface. The cameras 1a to 1d are respectively installed at different positions outside the vehicle. 2 and 3 show examples of arrangement of the cameras 1a to 1d. 2 is a plan view of the host vehicle, and FIG. 3 is a side view of the host vehicle.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the right side camera 1a is installed at a predetermined position on the right side of the vehicle, and is provided in a place where a right door mirror (right side mirror) has been conventionally installed. The right side camera 1a images the right rear of the vehicle. The left side camera 1b is installed at a predetermined position on the left side of the vehicle, and is provided at a place where a left door mirror (left side mirror) has conventionally been installed. The left side camera 1b images the left rear of the vehicle.

  The rear camera 1 c is provided at a high position of the rear door (back door) 3. When the rear door 3 is provided with a high mount stop lamp, the rear camera 1c is installed in the vicinity of the high mount stop lamp. The rear camera 1c is installed so as to capture the rear of the vehicle, and is provided so as to capture between the portion projected by the right side camera 1a and the portion projected by the left side camera 1b. The rear camera 1c may be provided outside the back door (outside the vehicle compartment), or may be provided inside the back door (in the vehicle compartment).

  The back camera 1d is installed at a predetermined position on the rear side of the vehicle such as the lower part of the rear glass, and images the rear side of the vehicle. As shown in FIG. 3, the rear camera 1c is provided at a position higher than the back camera 1d with respect to the ground surface. The rear camera 1c and the back camera 1d both capture the rear of the vehicle, but the rear camera 1c captures a distance from the host vehicle, and the back camera 1d captures the vicinity of the host vehicle. In other words, the back camera 1d images near the image capturing area of the rear camera 1c.

  When the user stands behind the rear door 3, the rear camera 1c is provided in a position where the user's face can be imaged and in a direction where the user can image. On the other hand, the back camera 1d is not provided in a position where the user's face can be imaged and in a direction where the user's face can be imaged.

  The right display 2a, the left display 2b, and the central display 2c are display devices that display images behind the host vehicle that are captured by the cameras 1a to 1d. FIG. 4 shows an arrangement example of the displays 2a to 2c. FIG. 4 is a view showing the periphery of the instrument panel of the host vehicle.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the right display 2 a is installed on the right side of the instrument panel 20. The right display 2a is a display that displays an image captured by the right side camera 1a. The left display 2 b is installed on the left side of the instrument panel 20. The left display 2b is a display that displays an image captured by the left side camera 1b. The central display 2 c is installed at the center of the instrument panel 20. The central display 2c is a display that displays images captured by the rear camera 1c and the back camera 1d.

  Returning to FIG. 1, the rear door 3 is a door provided at the rear of the host vehicle for closing the opening of the trunk in the vehicle interior. In the example shown in FIG. 2 or 3, the rear door 3 is configured as a rear hatchback door.

  The controller 10 acquires captured image information from the cameras 1a to 1d, generates display images to be displayed on the displays 2a to 2c, and outputs them to the displays 2a to 2c. This is a control device that visually presents the state of the rear and surroundings of the host vehicle with an electronic image. Moreover, the controller 10 detects a person from the captured images of the cameras 1a to 1c, and controls the operation of the rear door according to the distance from the own vehicle to the person.

  The controller 10 includes a ROM (Read Only Memory) in which various programs are stored, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) as an operation circuit for executing the programs stored in the ROM, and a RAM (Random Access) that functions as an accessible storage device. Memory) or the like. And the controller 10 has the image control part 11, the vehicle detection part 12, the door control part 14, and also has the memory 13 as a functional block for exhibiting each control function.

  The image control unit 11 generates a display image of the right display 2a using the captured image of the right side camera 1a, and outputs the generated display image to the right display 2a. In this example, the right rear camera 1a and the right display 2a are used instead of the right door mirror to display the rear side state on the right side of the vehicle.

  The angle of view of the right side camera is wider than the viewing angle of the right door mirror. Since the viewing angle of the right door mirror is narrow at a position far from the host vehicle, the display range of the right door mirror is narrow. On the other hand, since the angle of view of the right side camera 1a is wide, the imaging range of the right side camera 1a is widened. For example, when another vehicle is running far behind the host vehicle, the right door mirror shows a large vehicle, but the right side camera 1a has a smaller proportion of the vehicle in the imaging range. Therefore, when displaying on the right display 2a without correcting the captured image of the right side camera 1a, the vehicle is displayed in a small size. Then, the occupant confirming the display screen of the right display 2a recognizes the distance from the own vehicle to the other vehicle as well as the actual distance.

  When the image control unit 11 acquires a captured image of the right side camera 1a in order to eliminate the difference in distance between the mirror and the camera as described above, the image control unit 11 converts the image to the right according to the focal length of the right side camera 1a. When the image is displayed on the display 2a, the captured image is corrected so as to have a size corresponding to the display surface reflected on the mirror, and a display screen is generated.

  When displaying the captured image of the left side camera 1b on the left display 2b, the image control unit 11 generates a display image by correcting the captured image of the left side camera 1b in the same manner as described above. 2b.

  The image control unit 11 generates a display screen from the captured image captured by the rear camera 1c and outputs the display screen to the central display 2c. A difference in distance between the rear camera 1c and the rearview mirror occurs due to the difference in the viewing angle of the mirror and the angle of view of the camera, as in the case of the right door mirror and the right side camera 1a. Therefore, when displaying the captured image of the rear camera 1c on the central display 2c, the image control unit 11 generates the display image by correcting the captured image of the rear camera 1c as described above.

  Further, there is a difference in distance between the rear camera 1c and the rearview mirror due to the difference in the installation position. The room mirror is usually provided at the upper center of the windshield. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 2, the rear camera 1c is provided on the back door. For example, when the other vehicle approaches a position close to the rear of the host vehicle, the distance from the rear camera 1c to the other vehicle is shorter than the distance from the rear mirror to the other vehicle. Therefore, since the rear camera 1c captures the other vehicle at a position closer to the position of the rearview mirror, the size of the other vehicle captured by the rear camera 1c is larger than the size of the other vehicle reflected in the rearview mirror. ,growing.

  When the image control unit 11 acquires the captured image of the right side camera 1a in order to eliminate the difference in the sense of distance caused by the difference in the installation location of the rear camera 1c and the room mirror as described above, the image control unit 11 automatically captures the captured image. The captured image is corrected by converting it into an image having a viewpoint at a predetermined position (a position corresponding to the installation location of the room mirror) in the vehicle interior of the vehicle. Thereby, the image control part 11 produces | generates a display screen from the captured image imaged with the rear camera 1c, and outputs it to the center display 2c.

  In addition, the image control unit 11 generates a display image of the central display 2c using the captured image of the back camera 1d, and outputs the generated display image to the central display 2c. For example, when the user's operation or the shift lever is operated to the back position, the controller 10 switches the central display 2c from an image captured by the rear camera 1c to an image captured by the back camera 1d. At this time, the image control unit 11 generates a display image indicating at least the vicinity of the rear of the vehicle from the captured image of the back camera 1d.

  The image control unit 11 may display only the vicinity in the rear of the host vehicle on the central display 2c, or may be combined with an image of a camera other than the back camera 1d to obtain an overhead image viewed from directly above the host vehicle. An image displaying the surroundings of the host vehicle may be used. When displaying the surroundings of the host vehicle with a bird's-eye view image, the image control unit 11 displays an image of the back camera 1d and an image of another camera (for example, a camera that captures the surroundings of the side or the front of the host vehicle). , And the synthesized image is converted into an image with the viewpoint directly above the host vehicle, thereby generating an overhead image.

  The person detection unit 12 acquires a captured image of the rear camera 1c and detects a person based on the captured image. In the memory 13, a user's face image is registered in advance as user information such as a vehicle owner. Therefore, the person detection unit 12 identifies the registered person by comparing the captured image of the rear camera 1 c with the image registered in the memory 13.

  The door control unit 14 controls the operation of the rear door 3 in accordance with the distance between the person detected by the person detection unit 12 and the host vehicle.

  Next, control of the operation of the rear door 3 among the control of the controller 10 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 5 to 8. 5-8 has shown the side view of the own vehicle. FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining the imaging range of the rear camera 1c and the imaging range of the back camera 1d. FIG. 6 is a view for explaining the movable distance of the rear door 3. 7 and 8 are diagrams for explaining the relationship between the user's standing position and the movable range of the rear door 3.

  In the example of FIG. 5, a state in which the user approaches the vehicle from the rear of the vehicle in order to put the baggage into the trunk while holding the baggage in both hands is shown. The back camera 1d is provided downward at a low position of the vehicle so as to mainly capture the vicinity of the rear of the host vehicle. Therefore, since the user's face is not included in the imaging range of the back camera 1d (area D in FIG. 5), the back camera 1d cannot capture the user.

  On the other hand, the rear camera 1c is provided in the horizontal direction at a high position of the vehicle so as to capture a distant portion behind the vehicle. Therefore, since the user's face is included in the imaging range (area C in FIG. 5) of the rear camera 1c, the back camera 1d can photograph the user. In other words, in this example, the rear camera 1c is installed instead of the rearview mirror, and the captured image of the rear camera 1c is used for detecting a person, so that a person can be used without using another sensor for detecting the person. Is detected.

  Specifically, first, the person detection unit 12 recognizes a human face by identifying a facial feature (eyes, nose) or the like included in the captured image of the rear camera 1c. A person is detected when a person's face can be recognized. Then, the person detection unit 12 determines whether the detected person is a person recorded in the memory 13 by comparing the recognized face image and the face image in the memory 13. That is, when the face image included in the captured image matches the registered face image, the person detection unit 12 determines that the detected person is a person recorded in the memory 13. The determination result is output to the door control unit 14.

  When the person detection unit 12 determines that the detected person is a person recorded in the memory 13, the door control unit 14 permits the operation of the rear door 3. On the other hand, when the person detection unit 12 determines that the detected person is not a person recorded in the memory 13, the door control unit 14 does not permit the operation of the rear door 3. When the operation of the rear door 3 is not permitted, the rear door 3 is not automatically opened even if the detected person approaches the rear door 3.

  After permitting the operation of the rear door 3, the door control unit 14 measures the distance between the vehicle and the person from the size of the face image included in the captured image of the rear camera 1c. The measurement distance is, for example, the distance from the position of the rear bumper of the vehicle to the person. The starting point of the measurement distance measured by the door control unit 14 corresponds to the starting point of the movable distance of the rear door 3.

The door control unit 14 compares the measured distance with the movable distance of the rear door 3. FIG. 6 shows a state in which the rear door 3 is fully opened. When the rear door 3 is in the fully opened state from the closed state, the front end portion (point a in FIG. 6) of the rear door 3 draws a trajectory away from the rear portion of the vehicle. The trajectory of the front end portion of the rear door 3 is shown by a dotted line in FIG. The movable range of the rear door 3 is a range indicated by a dotted line in FIG. 6 with the fulcrum of the rear door 3 as the center. The movable distance of the rear door 3 indicates the distance from the rear end portion (rear bumper) of the vehicle to the front end portion of the rear door 3 in the direction along the traveling direction of the vehicle. In other words, the movable distance of the rear door 3 corresponds to the length represented by the component in the traveling direction of the vehicle among the straight lines (vectors) connecting the rear end portion of the vehicle and the front end portion of the rear door 3. . Further, the movable distance becomes maximum when the front end portion of the rear door 3 is located farthest from the rear portion of the vehicle in the direction along the traveling direction of the vehicle in the movable range of the rear door 3 (hereinafter referred to as maximum movable). Called distance). In the example of FIG. 6, L _max is the maximum movable distance.

As shown in FIG. 7, when the measured distance (L _a ) from the vehicle to the user is longer than the maximum movable distance (L _max ) of the rear door 3, the rear door 3 hits the user when the rear door 3 is opened. There is nothing. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 8, when the measured distance (L _b ) from the vehicle to the user is shorter than the maximum movable distance (L _max ) of the rear door 3, the rear door 3 is completely opened before the rear door 3 is fully opened. 3 hits the user.

Therefore, when the measurement distance is longer than the maximum movable distance (L _max ) of the rear door 3, the door control unit 14 sets the range in which the rear door 3 can be moved to the range indicated by the maximum movable distance (L _max ). Then, the rear door 3 is fully opened. Thereby, the door control part 14 controls the rear door 3 in the range shown by the maximum movable distance ( _Lmax ). Note that the range indicated by the maximum movement distance (L _max), the tip portion of the rear door 3 is in orbit that takes the maximum movable distance (L _max), corresponding to the range of moving the rear door 3.

On the other hand, when the measurement distance is shorter than the maximum movable distance (L _max ) of the rear door 3, the door control unit 14 indicates the range in which the rear door 3 can be moved by the measurement distance (distance L _{b in} the example of FIG. 8). Set within the range and open the rear door 3 within the set range. That is, the door control unit 14 does not completely open the rear door 3 but opens the rear door 3 until it hits the user. At this time, the rear door 3 may be opened until just before hitting the user, or may be opened to such an extent that the opened state of the rear door 3 can be confirmed by visual observation by the user. The range indicated by the measurement distance corresponds to a range in which the rear door 3 is moved in a trajectory in which the tip portion of the rear door 3 takes a distance shorter than the measurement distance.

  As described above, in this example, a person is detected based on the captured image of the rear camera 1c, and the operation of the rear door 3 is controlled according to the detected distance between the person and the vehicle. Thereby, since the camera is provided in the position which can detect a person, a person can be detected from the captured image of a camera. Further, before the user operates the rear door 3, the user can be recognized and the rear door 3 can be opened. As a result, usability for the user can be improved.

  In this example, a person is detected by recognizing a person's face from a captured image of the rear camera 1c. In this example, the distance between the detected person and the vehicle is measured, and the operation of the rear door 3 is controlled according to the comparison result between the measured distance and the movable distance of the rear door 3. Thereby, when the distance between a vehicle and a user is short, the range which the rear door 3 opens can be restrict | limited, and usability can be improved with respect to a user.

  Further, in this example, when the measurement distance between the vehicle and the user is longer than the maximum movable distance of the rear door 3, the operation of the rear door 3 is controlled within the range indicated by the maximum movable distance. Thereby, the rear door 3 can be opened without the rear door 3 hitting the user.

  Further, in this example, when the measurement distance between the vehicle and the user is shorter than the maximum movable distance of the rear door 3, the operation of the rear door 3 is controlled within the range indicated by the measurement distance. Thereby, the operation | movement of the rear door 3 can be controlled, without the rear door 3 hitting a user.

  In this example, it is determined whether or not the detected person is a person recorded in the memory 13, and it is determined that the detected person is a person recorded in the memory 13. Allow operation. Thereby, this example can be controlled so that the rear door 3 is automatically opened only by a user registered in advance, such as a vehicle owner.

  Further, in this example, a display image that displays the vicinity in the rear of the vehicle is generated from the captured image of the back camera 1d, a display image that displays distant in the rear of the vehicle is generated from the captured image of the rear camera 1c, and these displays are displayed. The image is displayed on the central display 2c. In this example, a person is detected based on a captured image of the rear camera 1c. Thus, in this example, since the camera that captures the distance behind the vehicle can be used to control the operation of the rear door 3 while detecting the person, there is no need to provide a separate camera or the like to detect the person. Good.

  In this example, the person detection unit 12 detects the person by comparing the face image registered in the memory 13 and the captured image of the rear camera 1c, but only from the captured image of the rear camera 1c. A person may be detected. Further, the person detection unit 12 may detect a person standing behind the host vehicle based on a captured image of the right side camera 1a or a captured image of the left side camera 1b.

  Moreover, the door control part 14 may measure the distance of a person from the captured image of the right side camera 1a and the captured image of the left side camera 1b using the principle of a stereo camera.

In this example, when the measurement distance is shorter than the maximum movable distance (L _max ) of the rear door 3, the door control unit 14 opens the rear door 3, but does not open the rear door 3. The operation of the rear door 3 may be controlled within the range indicated by the measurement distance.

  Moreover, in this example, the controller 10 communicates with the key (key) which a user possesses by radio | wireless communication, and when it can authenticate, controls the rear door 3 by the person detection part 12 and the door control part 14 by the person detection part 12. You may make it perform.

  In this example, the starting point of the movable distance of the rear door 3 is a rear bumper as an example of the rear end of the vehicle. As another example, the starting point of the movable distance of the rear door 3 may be, for example, the front end portion of the rear door 3 in a closed state, or may be the side surface of the rear door 3 outside the vehicle.

  The rear camera 1c corresponds to the “imaging unit” of the present invention, the person detection unit 12 corresponds to the “person detection unit” of the present invention, the memory 13 corresponds to the “recording unit” of the present invention, and the door control. The unit 14 corresponds to “operation control means”, and the image control unit 11 corresponds to “display control means” of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1a ... Right side camera 1b ... Left side camera 1c ... Rear camera 1d ... Back camera 2a ... Right display 2b ... Left display 2c ... Center display 3 ... Rear door 10 ... Controller 11 ... Image control part 12 ... Person detection part 13 ... Memory 14 ... Door control unit

Claims (6)

An imaging means provided in the host vehicle for imaging the rear of the host vehicle;
Person detecting means for detecting a person based on a captured image of the imaging means;
A vehicle comprising: an operation control unit configured to control an operation of a door provided at a rear portion of the own vehicle according to a distance between the person detected by the person detecting unit and the own vehicle. Door operating device. The vehicle door operating device according to claim 1,
The person detecting means is
By recognizing a person's face from the captured image, the person is detected,
The operation control means includes
Measure the distance between the vehicle and the person,
A vehicle door operation device that controls the operation of the door according to a comparison result between the measured measurement distance and the movable distance of the door. The vehicle door operating device according to claim 2,
The operation control means includes
When the measurement distance is longer than the maximum movable distance of the door, the operation of the door is controlled within a range indicated by the maximum movable distance. In the vehicle door operation device according to claim 2 or 3,
The operation control means includes
When the measurement distance is shorter than the maximum movable distance of the door, the operation of the door is controlled within a range indicated by the measurement distance. In the vehicle door operation device according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
It further comprises recording means for recording the person information,
The person detecting means is
Determining whether the detected person is a person recorded in the recording means;
The operation control means includes
The vehicle door operation device according to claim 1, wherein the operation of the door is permitted when the person detection unit determines that the detected person is a person recorded in the recording unit. In the vehicle door operation device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
A display for displaying a captured image captured by the imaging means;
A display control means for generating a display image displayed by the display means and controlling the display means;
The imaging means includes
A first camera;
Having a second camera that images farther than the imaging range of the first camera and that is provided at a position higher than the first camera with respect to the ground surface;
The display control means includes
Generate a display screen that displays the vicinity of the host vehicle from the captured image of the first camera,
Generate a display screen that displays the distance of the host vehicle from the captured image of the second camera,
The person detecting means is
A vehicle door operation device that detects a person based on a captured image of the second camera.

Images