Patent ID: 8170340

Claim:
A device for identifying a traffic sign in an image, comprising: a Hough transformer which is implemented to identify a plurality of line sections running through the image in different directions in the image or in an edge image derived from same; a shape detector which is implemented to detect a shape corresponding to a traffic sign in the image or in an edge image derived from same based on the identified line sections; and a pattern identifier which is implemented to select an image section corresponding to the detected shape whose shape corresponds to the shape detected by the shape detector based on the detected shape and to identify a traffic sign based on the selected image section using a comparative image pattern, wherein the pattern identifier is implemented to adapt the section of the image and the comparative image pattern to each other with respect to a shape by mapping; wherein the Hough transformer is further implemented to identify circular arc segments or elliptical arc segments in the image or in the edge image derived from same; wherein the device further comprises an ellipse detector which is implemented to detect a location of an ellipse in the image or in the edge image derived from same based on the identified circular arc segments or elliptical arc segments; wherein the Hough transformer is implemented to determine extreme points of circular arc segments or of elliptical arc segments, and wherein the ellipse detector is implemented to select at least a first set of four extreme points from the extreme points determined by the Hough transformer, and a second set of four extreme points from the extreme points determined by the Hough transformer, wherein the first set of four extreme points is different from the second set of four extreme points, to determine parameters of a first fit ellipse by the four extreme points of the first set of extreme points, to determine a deviation of the four extreme points of the first set of extreme points from the first fit ellipse, to determine parameters of a second fit ellipse by the four extreme points of the second set of extreme points, to determine a deviation of the four extreme points of the second set of extreme points from the fit ellipse, and to determine, using the deviation of the four extreme points of the first set of extreme points from the first fit ellipse and using the deviation of the four extreme points of the second set of extreme points from the second fit ellipse, whether the four extreme points of the first set of extreme points belong to an ellipse in the image, and whether the four extreme points of the second set of extreme points belong to an ellipse in the image.