US 2016/0107595 A1 · PEDESTRIAN COLLISION WARNING SYSTEM

Abstract

A method is provided for preventing a collision between a motor vehicle and a pedestrian. The method uses a camera and a processor mountable in the motor vehicle. A candidate image is detected. Based on a change of scale of the candidate image, it may be determined that the motor vehicle and the pedestrian are expected to collide, thereby producing a potential collision warning. Further information from the image frames may be used to validate the potential collision warning. The validation may include an analysis of the optical flow of the candidate image, that lane markings prediction of a straight road, a calculation of the lateral motion of the pedestrian, if the pedestrian is crossing a lane mark or curb and/or if the vehicle is changing lanes.

Claims16

Dependent claims

A computerized method using a camera mountable in a motor vehicle, the method comprising:

acquiring a plurality of image frames from the camera with a known time interval;
detecting an image patch in at least one of the image frames, wherein the image patch includes a candidate image of a pedestrian in the field of view of the camera;
responsive to the motor vehicle moving forward, tracking optical flow between the image frames of an image point of the pedestrian;
from horizontal image motion of the tracked point of the pedestrian relative to the horizontal image coordinate of the focus of expansion, computing lateral motion of the pedestrian responsive to longitudinal distance to the pedestrian;
and
estimating the lateral position of the pedestrian at a time-to-collision from the lateral motion of the pedestrian.

3 more elements

A system comprising:

a camera mountable in a motor vehicle;
and
a processor mountable in the motor vehicle, wherein the processor is operably connectable to the camera;
wherein the processor is configured to:
acquire a plurality of image frames from the camera with a known time interval;
detect an image patch in at least one of the image frames, wherein the image patch includes a candidate image of a pedestrian in the field of view of the camera;
responsive to the forward motion of the motor vehicle, track optical flow between the image frames of an image point of the pedestrian;
from horizontal image motion of the tracked point of the pedestrian relative to the horizontal image coordinate of the focus of expansion, compute lateral motion of the pedestrian responsive to longitudinal distance to the pedestrian;
and
estimate the lateral position of the pedestrian at a time-to-collision from the lateral motion of the pedestrian.

7 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application

14/982,198Filed 29 Dec 2015

Priority

27 Apr 2011

Published

21 Apr 2016

Term ends

Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification14 codes

B60R 21/013
Electrical circuits for triggering passive safety arrangements, e.g. airbags, safety belt tighteners, in case of vehicle accidents or impending…:…
B60W 30/0956
Predicting travel path or likelihood of collision: the prediction being responsive to traffic or environmental parameters
G06T 7/269
Analysis of motion: using gradient-based methods
G06V 20/58
Exterior to a vehicle by using sensors mounted on the vehicle: recognition of moving objects or obstacles, e.g. vehicles or pedestrians;…

Family

Application61/479,485Us provisional application · filed 27 Apr 2011

Application13/455,719Continuation · filed 25 Apr 2012

Application14/982,198Continuation

US 2012/0314071 A1Published application

US 9,233,659 B2Related patent

US 9,925,939 B2Related patent

US 2016/0107595 A1This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.

Pedestrian collision warning system

Life of this patent

Pedestrian collision warning system

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims16