Vehicle collision warning system and method

摘要

A vehicle collision warning system and method that alerts a driver of an impending collision by displaying enhanced video of an upcoming road segment, where the enhanced video includes an in-path object that is highlighted so that it stands apart. In one exemplary embodiment, the system and method receive video of an upcoming road segment from a forward-looking vision system, obtain certain collision data for an in-path object, and then use the video and the collision data to provide enhanced video to a visual display that is seen by the driver. The enhanced video may include an in-path object that is highlighted according to the collision data (e.g., highlighted with a color-coded scheme where the in-path object changes color based on time-to-collision data) so that it stands apart from the rest of the upcoming road segment.

主权项

1. A collision warning system for a vehicle, comprising:
a vision system being mounted on the vehicle, the vision system provides color video of an upcoming road segment that includes at least one in-path object; a control module being coupled to the vision system, the control module receives the color video from the vision system and provides enhanced video of the upcoming road segment that includes the in-path object, wherein the in-path object is highlighted in color according to collision data by graying out a background of the color video so that the in-path object stands apart from the rest of the upcoming road segment which is in black and white; and a color heads-up display (HUD) being coupled to the control module, the color heads-up display (HUD) receives the enhanced video from the control module and displays the enhanced video to a driver on a windshield of the vehicle, wherein the enhanced video that is displayed on the color heads-up display (HUD) includes the in-path object in color set against the rest of the upcoming road segment in black and white so as to create a contrast that acts as an intuitive warning to the driver.