Improved Perception for Automated Vehicle Using Multi-Pose Camera System

In this paper, a method of improving the automated vehicle’s perception using a multi-pose camera system (MPCS) is presented. The proposed MPCS is composed of two identical colored and high frame-rate cameras: one installed in the driver side and the other in the passenger side. Perspective of MPCS varies depending on the width of vehicle type in which MPCS is installed. To increase perspective, we use the maximum width of the host vehicle as camera to camera distance for the MPCS. In addition, angular positions of the two cameras in MPCS are controlled by two separate electric motor-based actuators. Steering wheel angle, which is available from the vehicle Controller Area Network (CAN) messages, is used to supply information to the actuators to synchronize MPCS camera positions with the host vehicle steering wheel. By synchronizing MPCS with the steering wheel angle, MPCS can track the host vehicle’s steering wheel more closely and then position its individual camera versus the steering wheel to acquire wide-perspective and useful information to feed the host vehicle. Furthermore, in MPCS, stream of images from the two cameras are processed using image fusion and three dimensional (3D) estimation techniques. MPCS composes multiple images from different perspectives, performing depth estimation of the scene and supplying the host vehicle with compounded broad perspective information about the environment around it. Compared with the single cameras or traditional cameras, MPCS can benefit the host vehicle with improved perception about its driving environment. Vision for the host vehicle therefore can be enhanced. The proposed MPCS has been validated by simulation in Matlab Simulink. Experiments have also been performed to confirm effectiveness of the proposed MPCS.