US-12627901-B2 - Camera system, vehicle, control method, and storage medium

US12627901B2US 12627901 B2US12627901 B2US 12627901B2US-12627901-B2

Abstract

In a camera system, a captured image of a rear of a vehicle is acquired, an optical image having a high-resolution region and a low-resolution region is formed on an imaging unit, a first image is generated by cutting out a first region from an image region corresponding to the high-resolution region in an image read from the imaging unit, a second image is generated by cutting out a second region from an image region different from the first region, the first image and the second image are generated such that at least a portion of a lower end of the second region is positioned below a lower end of the first region, and at least a portion of an upper end of the second region is positioned below an upper end of the first region, and at least one of the first image and the second image is output for display.

Inventors

Ikunari Nakahara
Tomoaki TSUCHIYA

Assignees

CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA

Dates

Publication Date: 20260512
Application Date: 20240807
Priority Date: 20210924

Claims (17)

1 . An image processing apparatus comprising: at least one processor or circuit configured to function as a plurality of units comprising: (1) acquiring unit configured to acquire an image from an imaging unit that captures an image of a rear of a vehicle; (2) an image generation unit configured to (a) generate a first image by cropping a first region from an image region close to a center of a sensor surface and (b) generate a second image by cropping a second region from an image region different from the first region of the sensor surface; and (3) a display control unit configured to output the first image for displaying, and to output the second image for displaying in a case where the vehicle is backing up, wherein the image generation unit generates the first image and the second image so that (a) a part of a lower region of the first region overlaps a part of an upper region of the second region and (b) a part of an upper region of the first region does not overlap a part of an upper region of the second region.
2 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the image is captured using an optical system that forms an optical image having a high-resolution region close to the center of the sensor surface where the half angle of view is less than the predetermined half angle of view and a low-resolution region of the sensor surface where the half angle of view is equal to or larger than the predetermined half angle of view, and wherein the image generation unit generates a first image by cropping a first region from an image region corresponding to the high-resolution region and generates a second image by cropping a second region from an image region different from the first region.
3 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the image generation unit generates the first image and the second image so that the entire lower end of the second region is positioned below the lower end of the first region, and the entire upper end of the second region is positioned below the upper end of the first region.
4 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the image generation unit generates the first image and the second image so that a left end of the second region is positioned on a left side of a left end of the first region, and a right end of the second region is positioned on a right side of a right end of the first region.
5 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the image generation unit generates the first image and the second image so that the upper end of the second region is positioned between the upper end and the lower end of the first region.
6 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the image generation unit generates the first image and the second image so that the upper end of the second region is positioned on or above a horizon in the captured image.
7 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein, when a focal length of the imaging unit is f, a half angle of view is θ, an image height on an image surface is y, and a projection characteristic representing a relationship between the image height y and the half angle of view θ is y(θ), y(θ) in the high-resolution region is larger than f×θ, which is different from a projection characteristic in the low-resolution region.
8 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein the high-resolution region is configured to have a projection characteristic close to a central projection method (y=f×tan θ) or an equidistant projection method (y=f×θ).
9 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein, when θmax is a maximum half angle of view of the optical system, and A is a predetermined constant, the image processing apparatus is configured to satisfy the following equation: 1 < f × sin ⁢ θ max y ⁡ ( θ max ) ≤ A
10 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the display control unit outputs the first image without geometric deformation processing, but outputs the second image with a predetermined geometric deformation processing.
11 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 10 , wherein the image generation unit determines whether or not a vehicle traveling speed is higher than a predetermined traveling speed based on traveling speed information of the vehicle which is included in the state information of the vehicle, and sets the upper end of the second region in a case where it is determined that the vehicle traveling speed is higher than the predetermined traveling speed to be positioned above the upper end of the second region in a case where it is not determined that the vehicle traveling speed is higher than the predetermined traveling speed.
12 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 10 , wherein, in a case where it is determined that there is an obstacle based on obstacle information around the vehicle which is included in the state information of the vehicle, the image generation unit makes the second region larger than in a case where it is determined that there is no obstacle, so that the second region includes the obstacle in the second region.
13 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 10 , wherein the image generation unit outputs the second image in a case where it is determined that the vehicle is backing up based on moving direction information of the vehicle included in the state information of the vehicle, and does not output the second image in a case where it is not determined that the vehicle is backing up.
14 . The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of units further comprises a communication unit configured to acquire state information of the vehicle, and wherein the image generation unit changes at least the second region according to the state information of the vehicle.
15 . A vehicle comprising: (A) at least one processor or circuit configured to function as a plurality of units comprising: (1) acquiring unit configured to acquire an image from an imaging unit that captures an image of a rear of a vehicle; (2) an image generation unit configured to (a) generate a first image by cropping a first region from an image region close to a center of a sensor surface and (b) generate a second image by cropping a second region from an image region different from the first region of the sensor surface; and (3) a display control unit configured to output the first image for displaying, and to output the second image for displaying in a case where the vehicle is backing up, wherein the image generation unit generates the first image and the second image so that (a) a part of a lower region of the first region overlaps a part of an upper region of the second region and (b) a part of an upper region of the first region does not overlap a part of an upper region of the second region; and (B) at least one processor or circuit configured to function as a display unit configured to display at least one of the first image and the second image output from the display control unit.
16 . A control method for controlling an image processing apparatus, the method comprising: acquiring an image from an imaging unit that captures an image of a rear of a vehicle; generating a first image by cropping a first region from an image region close to a center of a sensor surface; generating a second image by cropping a second region from an image region different from the first region of the sensor surface; outputting the first image for displaying; and outputting the second image for displaying in a case where the vehicle is backing up, wherein the first image and the second image are generated so that (a) a part of a lower region of the first region overlaps a part of an upper region of the second region and (b) a part of an upper region of the first region does not overlap a part of an upper region of the second region.
17 . A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium configured to store a computer program for causing an image processing apparatus to execute steps comprising: acquiring an image from an imaging unit that captures an image of a rear of a vehicle; generating a first image by cropping a first region from an image region close to a center of a sensor surface; generating a second image by cropping a second region from an image region different from the first region of the sensor surface; outputting the first image for displaying; and outputting the second image for displaying in a case where the vehicle is backing up, wherein the first image and the second image are generated so that (a) a part of a lower region of the first region overlaps a part of an upper region of the second region and (b) a part of an upper region of the first region does not overlap a part of an upper region of the second region.

Description

This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 17/942,291 filed Sep. 12, 2022. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a camera system capable of acquiring images having different resolutions, a vehicle, a control method, and a storage medium. Description of the Related Art In recent years, there has been a demand to replace a rear-view mirror mounted on a vehicle with an electronic rear-view mirror. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-95202 discloses an electronic rear-view mirror system which is constituted by an imaging unit that sets a rear side outside a vehicle as an imaging range and display means inside the vehicle, and the electronic rear-view mirror system displaying an image captured by the imaging unit on a display inside the vehicle so that a driver can confirm the state of the rear side outside the vehicle. On the other hand, there is a rearward confirmation system that allows a driver to confirm a blind spot behind a vehicle when the vehicle moves back, or the like. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-345554 discloses a rearward confirmation system in which a camera is installed to image a side behind a vehicle, and a captured image is displayed inside the vehicle, so that a driver can confirm a blind spot behind the vehicle when the vehicle moves back, or the like. A camera serving as an imaging unit that captures an image for the above-mentioned electronic rear-view mirror is required to have a high resolution so that a driver can confirm a relatively distant rear view more accurately. On the other hand, the camera for the rearward confirmation system confirms safety in a wider range including a blind spot behind the vehicle and a rear side in order to avoid a collision when the vehicle moves back, or the like, and thus the camera is required to image a larger range. Thus, in a case where the electronic rear-view mirror system and the rearward confirmation system are mounted on a vehicle at the same time, there is a problem that an in-vehicle camera system becomes complicated when the camera for the electronic rear-view mirror system and the camera for the rearward confirmation system are separately mounted. Thus, in view of the above-mentioned problem, an object of the present invention is to provide a camera system capable of generating a high-resolution first image and a low-resolution second image by one imaging unit, the low-resolution second image being an image in which a lower side can be displayed in a wide range. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a camera system according to an aspect of the present invention includes an imaging unit that acquires a captured image of a rear of a vehicle;an optical system that forms an optical image having a high-resolution region and a low-resolution region on the imaging unit;at least one processor or circuit configured to function as:an image generation unit configured to generate a first image by cutting out a first region from an image region corresponding to the high-resolution region in an image data read from the imaging unit and generate a second image by cutting out a second region from an image region different from the first region; andan output unit configured to output at least one of the first image and the second image for display,wherein the image generation unit generates the first image and the second image so that at least a portion of a lower end of the second region is positioned below a lower end of the first region, and at least a portion of an upper end of the second region is positioned below an upper end of the first region. Further features of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of embodiments with reference to the attached drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a positional relationship between a vehicle 1 and an imaging unit 2. FIGS. 2(A) and 2(B) are diagrams illustrating optical characteristics of the imaging unit 2. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a camera system in a first embodiment. FIGS. 4A to 4D are diagrams illustrating an example of a cut-out region in the first embodiment. FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a processing flow of a camera system in a second embodiment. DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings, favorable modes of the present invention will be described using Embodiments. In each diagram, the same reference signs are applied to the same members or elements, and duplicate description will be omitted or simplified. First Embodiment In a first embodiment, description will be given of an improved method that achieves both a high-definition display for an electronic rear-view mirror and a wide-range display for confirming a rear side by one camera. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a positional relationship between a vehicle 1 and an imagin