Patent ID: 7706572
Filing Date: 2010-04-27
Classification: B60R,G06K,G06T

Abstract:
1. An obstacle detection system comprising: a first image pickup unit and a second image pickup unit for obtaining a first image information of a first image and a second image information of a second image, respectively, by taking the surrounding region of a driver's own vehicle substantially simultaneously as images formed of a set of pixels from light receiving units arranged at a spacing on the own vehicle; an image information storage unit for storing said first image information and said second image information; an intensity difference image forming unit for forming an intensity difference image by determining the corresponding pixels in said second image of the second image information, as assuming that an arbitrary pixel of said first image of said first image information stored in said image information storage unit exists on the ground plane being traveled by said own vehicle, to determine the intensity difference between said arbitrary pixel and said corresponding pixel; a discrimination image forming unit for obtaining a discrimination image by discriminating each pixel in said intensity difference image into a pixel having an intensity difference no less than a standard value and a pixel having an intensity difference less than the standard value; and a decision unit for detecting and deciding a region having a generally wedge-shaped set of pixels in said discrimination image as an obstacle region.