Adaptive surrounding view monitoring apparatus and method thereof

摘要

An adaptive surrounding view monitoring apparatus and a method thereof are disclosed, in which the apparatus uses a steerable camera set to take horizontal images while sending the horizontal images to a control unit where they are combined into an image of 180-degree or 360-degree surrounding view. It is noted that the surrounding view image maybe an image of front surrounding view, an image of rear surrounding view or an image of ambient surrounding view relating to a vehicle, and using that, visual blind spot of a driver driving the vehicle can be eliminated and the field of vision is widened, and thereby, the probability of accident occurring is reduced.

主权项

1. An adaptive surrounding view monitoring apparatus, comprising:
a steerable camera set; a control unit, electrically connected to the steerable camera set; a display unit, electrically connected to the control unit; and a mode switch, electrically connected to the control unit, wherein the control unit comprises an image input element electrically connected to the steerable camera set, and the image input element converts analog signals received from the steerable camera set into digital signals; wherein the steerable camera set includes four groups of cameras, which are a first steerable camera group, a second steerable camera group, a third steerable camera group and a fourth steerable camera group; wherein the mode switch is configured to receive an input directly from a driver to change the mode of the mode switch; wherein when the mode switch is situated in the front surrounding view mode, a camera control element is provided and used for controlling micro process units and motor modules in cameras belonging to a first steerable camera group, a second steerable camera group and a third steerable camera group, for enabling the image sensors of the cameras in the first steerable camera group, the second steerable camera group and the third steerable camera group to be orientated adequately for capturing images, while providing the captured images to an image processing element through an image input element where they are distorted, aligned and mosaicked into the image of 180-degree surrounding view to the front of the vehicle to the display unit through an image output element; wherein when the mode switch is situated in the rear surrounding view mode, a camera control element is provided and used for controlling micro process units and motor modules in cameras belonging to a second steerable camera group, a third steerable camera group and a fourth steerable camera group, for enabling the image sensors of the cameras in the second steerable camera group, the third steerable camera group and the fourth steerable camera group to be orientated adequately for capturing images, while providing the captured images to an image processing element through an image input element where they are distorted, aligned and mosaicked into the image of 180-degree surrounding view to the rear of the vehicle to the display unit through an image output element; and wherein when the mode switch is situated in the ambient surrounding view mode, a camera control element is provided and used for controlling micro process units and motor modules in cameras belonging to a first steerable camera group, a second steerable camera group, a third steerable camera group and a fourth steerable camera group, for enabling the image sensors of the cameras in the first steerable camera group, the second steerable camera group, the third steerable camera group and the fourth steerable camera group to be orientated adequately for capturing images, while providing the captured images to an image processing element through an image input element where they are distorted, aligned and mosaicked into the image of 360-degree surrounding view to the ambient environment of the vehicle to the display unit through an image output element.