Patent ID: 7365779

Claim:
An image processing apparatus for a vehicle, comprising a video camera for shooting an object, a memory for storing an image signal supplied from said video camera, and a CPU for performing prescribed processing on said image signal read out of said memory, wherein said image processing apparatus includes selective writing means for providing, in accordance with a select command from said CPU, an upper image signal representing a portion corresponding to a designated area in an upper half of an imaging surface defined by said image signal supplied from said video camera and a lower image signal representing a portion corresponding to a designated area in a lower half of said imaging surface, and for writing only said upper and lower image signals as selected image signals into said memory; and said CPU recognizes a brightness of sky from said selected upper image signal and thereby judges either day time or night time, and recognizes presence of a vehicle ahead from said selected lower image signal; wherein a number of pixels of said designated area in said upper half of said imaging surface is smaller than a number of pixels of said designated area in said lower half of said imaging surface.