Patents by Inventor Shoji Muramatsu

Shoji Muramatsu has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20220099445
    Abstract: An outside sensing information processing device for suppressing adverse influence on warning of an advanced vehicle safety system. The vehicle safety system receives position information of an object detected by another vehicle or a road, the positions of feature points of a stationary object, and configuration information of an environmental map. When the system receives the information, the position of the object on the environmental map is calculated. Another vehicle also transmits position information of itself. The present vehicle checks an error of the position information of the vehicle detected by the other vehicle from the position information of the another vehicle and the relation of the position of a feature point detected by the another vehicle and the position of the feature point detected by the present vehicle. In the case where the error is large or unstable, use of the position information from the other vehicle is avoided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 6, 2020
    Publication date: March 31, 2022
    Applicant: HITACHI ASTEMO, LTD.
    Inventors: Hiroaki NAKATA, Shoji MURAMATSU
  • Patent number: 10625675
    Abstract: A lane departure judgment apparatus is configured to detect a lane-dividing line based on image information output from an image-capturing device that acquires an image of an area outside a vehicle, and to judge whether or not departure of the vehicle from the lane-dividing line occurs based on a distance between the vehicle and the lane-dividing line, wherein when an angle of the vehicle with respect to the lane-dividing line thus detected is constant, the distance between the vehicle and the lane-dividing line to be used to judge whether or not departure of the vehicle occurs is changed according to whether the vehicle is being driven on a road having a lane-dividing width that is greater than a predetermined width or on a road having a lane-dividing width that is smaller than a predetermined width.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 17, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 21, 2020
    Assignee: Clarion Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Masato Imai, Masayuki Takemura, Shoji Muramatsu
  • Patent number: 10095934
    Abstract: An in-vehicle device includes: an image acquisition unit that obtains a captured image from a camera that captures, via a camera lens, an image of a surrounding environment around a vehicle; an accumulation detection unit that individually detects a plurality of types of accumulation settled at the camera lens based upon the captured image; an image recognition unit that recognizes an object image, expressing a specific object present in the surrounding environment, in the captured image; a detection results integrating unit that calculates integrated detection results by integrating a plurality of sets of detection results based upon various sets of detection results pertaining to detection of the plurality of types of accumulation provided by the accumulation detection unit; and an operation control unit that controls operation executed by the image recognition unit based upon the integrated detection results.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 13, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 9, 2018
    Assignee: Clarion Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Masayuki Takemura, Masahiro Kiyohara, Shoji Muramatsu, Kota Irie, Yasuhiro Akiyama
  • Patent number: 10096124
    Abstract: A water droplet detection device has an image capturing unit and a water droplet detection unit. The image capturing unit has a photographic optical system that an area captures an image of a predetermined area. The water droplet detection unit sets an arbitrary attention point in the captured image, a plurality of first reference points inside an imaginary circle of a predetermined radius having the attention point as a center the imaginary circle, and a plurality of second reference points corresponding to the first reference points outside the imaginary circle. The water droplet detection unit detects edge information between the first reference points and second reference points, and assesses a circularity strength of the edge information to detect a water droplet attached to the photographic optical system. The water droplet detection device can be used with an image conversion unit to form a three-dimensional object detection device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 24, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 9, 2018
    Assignees: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., Clarion Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Yasuhisa Hayakawa, Osamu Fukata, Masayuki Takemura, Akira Utagawa, Shoji Muramatsu, Kota Irie
  • Patent number: 10037169
    Abstract: Provided is an image processing device capable of an image processing with using a general-purpose image processing hardware in accordance with video input without mediation of a CPU. The image processing device includes: a storage medium for storing an image data acquired by video inputting unit for acquiring video images; a CPU for a general processing; image processing unit for processing the image data stored in the storage medium; setting unit for determining a processing content of the image processing unit; a command list indicating an order of setting and activating the image processing unit; and command writing unit for setting and activating the image processing unit based on the command list in synchronization with input of the image data from the video inputting unit without mediation of the CPU.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 7, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 31, 2018
    Assignee: Renesas Electronics Corporation
    Inventors: Hideaki Kido, Shoji Muramatsu, Hiroyuki Hamasaki, Akihiro Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 10027900
    Abstract: Means which enables image conversion in which a plurality of conversion results can be output without once saving all of video-image data, which has been input from image-pickup means, in a storage medium is provided. A single line memory having a plurality of lines is used while switching the role thereof for a reading use by a video-image converting means and a use for inputting image data from the image-pickup means. The image converting means obtains an input image, which is in the line memory, and carries out conversion of the input image based on a conversion specifying means interpreted by an instruction decoder.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 12, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 17, 2018
    Assignee: Renesas Electronics Corporation
    Inventors: Hideaki Kido, Shoji Muramatsu, Hiroyuki Hamasaki, Akihiro Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 9956941
    Abstract: An on-board device, that outputs a control signal to a cleaning control unit that controls accumulation removing units used to remove accumulations settled on a photographic lens in an on-board camera by adopting a plurality of methods, includes: an accumulation detection unit that detects an accumulation settled on the photographic lens from a photographic image output from the on-board camera when a vehicle speed input thereto is equal to or higher than a predetermined vehicle speed; a selection unit that selects an accumulation removing unit adopting a first method among the accumulation removing units adopting the plurality of methods; and a removal decision unit that makes a decision, based upon the photographic image, as to whether or not the accumulation has been removed from the photographic lens through a removal operation performed by the accumulation removing unit adopting the first method, which has been selected by the selection unit, wherein: if the removal decision unit decides that the accumul
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 3, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 1, 2018
    Assignees: Clarion Co., Ltd., Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Masahiro Kiyohara, Kota Irie, Katsuyuki Nakamura, Shoji Muramatsu, Masayuki Takemura, Osamu Fukata, Yasuhisa Hayakawa
  • Patent number: 9953227
    Abstract: An in-vehicle image processing device processes camera images to determine a parkable area and includes an overhead image generation section generating an overhead image relative to a road surface by converting the view point of an image of a nearby vehicle and the road surface taken by a vehicle-mounted camera; a tire recognition section recognizing the tires of the nearby vehicle; a three-dimensional object recognition section recognizing three-dimensional objects including the nearby vehicle; an area-under-vehicle recognition section calculating the ground contact position of the tire and the above-ground height from the ground contact position to the vehicle body and recognizing an area under the vehicle body on the road surface from the overhead image; and a parkable area recognition section for recognizing the area occupied by the vehicle body and the area under the vehicle body as a non-parking area and recognizing a parkable area on the road surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 16, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 24, 2018
    Assignee: CLARION CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Akira Utagawa, Takeshi Shima, Shoji Muramatsu, Masao Sakata, Yoshitaka Uchida
  • Patent number: 9922258
    Abstract: An on-vehicle image processing apparatus includes: a photographing device configured to photograph a road surface around a vehicle; an image creation section configured to create an overhead view image showing a periphery of the vehicle when looked down from above the vehicle, based on the obtained photographed image; an extraction section configured to extract a road surface sign around the vehicle by using the created overhead view image; a detection section configured to detect one or more noises among at least a road surface noise, an obstruction noise, and an attached substance noise that are to be observed when the extraction section extracts the road surface sign; and a parking frame recognition section configured to recognize a parking frame based on one of a partial photographing region in the photographed image and a partial overhead view region in the overhead view image, depending on the detected noise.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 27, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 20, 2018
    Assignee: Clarion Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Masahiro Kiyohara, Takehito Ogata, Satoshi Suzuki, Shoji Muramatsu
  • Publication number: 20180059989
    Abstract: Provided is an image processing device capable of an image processing with using a general-purpose image processing hardware in accordance with video input without mediation of a CPU. The image processing device includes: a storage medium for storing an image data acquired by video inputting unit for acquiring video images; a CPU for a general processing; image processing unit for processing the image data stored in the storage medium; setting unit for determining a processing content of the image processing unit; a command list indicating an order of setting and activating the image processing unit; and command writing unit for setting and activating the image processing unit based on the command list in synchronization with input of the image data from the video inputting unit without mediation of the CPU.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 7, 2017
    Publication date: March 1, 2018
    Inventors: Hideaki Kido, Shoji Muramatsu, Hiroyuki Hamasaki, Akihiro Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 9836247
    Abstract: Provided is an image processing device capable of an image processing with using a general-purpose image processing hardware in accordance with video input without mediation of a CPU. The image processing device includes: a storage medium for storing an image data acquired by video inputting unit for acquiring video images; a CPU for a general processing; image processing unit for processing the image data stored in the storage medium; setting unit for determining a processing content of the image processing unit; a command list indicating an order of setting and activating the image processing unit; and command writing unit for setting and activating the image processing unit based on the command list in synchronization with input of the image data from the video inputting unit without mediation of the CPU.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 17, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 5, 2017
    Assignee: Renesas Electronics Corporation
    Inventors: Hideaki Kido, Shoji Muramatsu, Hiroyuki Hamasaki, Akihiro Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 9804386
    Abstract: A camera device includes image capturing device, a lens cleaning device, an adhesion state assessment unit and a controller. The image capturing device is installed on a vehicle and has a lens for forming an image of the vehicle surroundings. The lens cleaning device cleans the lens by spraying a cleaning fluid on the lens in accordance with a predetermined lens cleaning step, in which at least a supply time for supplying cleaning fluid to the lens surface is predetermined. The adhesion state assessment unit is programmed to assess an adhesion state of contamination from a distribution of pixels corresponding to foreign matter adhered to the lens based on a captured image. The controller is programmed to extend the time until a time to start supplying the cleaning fluid in the lens cleaning step as the number of pixels corresponding to foreign matter adhered to the lens increases.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 26, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 31, 2017
    Assignees: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., Clarion Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Yasuhisa Hayakawa, Osamu Fukata, Masayuki Takemura, Masahiro Kiyohara, Shoji Muramatsu, Kota Irie
  • Publication number: 20170310904
    Abstract: Means which enables image conversion in which a plurality of conversion results can be output without once saving all of video-image data, which has been input from image-pickup means, in a storage medium is provided. A single line memory having a plurality of lines is used while switching the role thereof for a reading use by a video-image converting means and a use for inputting image data from the image-pickup means. The image converting means obtains an input image, which is in the line memory, and carries out conversion of the input image based on a conversion specifying means interpreted by an instruction decoder.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 12, 2017
    Publication date: October 26, 2017
    Inventors: Hideaki KIDO, Shoji MURAMATSU, Hiroyuki HAMASAKI, Akihiro YAMAMOTO
  • Publication number: 20170270370
    Abstract: An in-vehicle image processing device processes camera images to determine a parkable area and includes an overhead image generation section generating an overhead image relative to a road surface by converting the view point of an image of a nearby vehicle and the road surface taken by a vehicle-mounted camera; a tire recognition section recognizing the tires of the nearby vehicle; a three-dimensional object recognition section recognizing three-dimensional objects including the nearby vehicle; an area-under-vehicle recognition section calculating the ground contact position of the tire and the above-ground height from the ground contact position to the vehicle body and recognizing an area under the vehicle body on the road surface from the overhead image; and a parkable area recognition section for recognizing the area occupied by the vehicle body and the area under the vehicle body as a non-parking area and recognizing a parkable area on the road surface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 16, 2015
    Publication date: September 21, 2017
    Applicant: CLARION CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Akira UTAGAWA, Takeshi SHIMA, Shoji MURAMATSU, Masao SAKATA, Yoshitaka UCHIDA
  • Patent number: 9736393
    Abstract: Means which enables image conversion in which a plurality of conversion results can be output without once saving all of video-image data, which has been input from image-pickup means, in a storage medium is provided. A single line memory having a plurality of lines is used while switching the role thereof for a reading use by a video-image converting means and a use for inputting image data from the image-pickup means. The image converting means obtains an input image, which is in the line memory, and carries out conversion of the input image based on a conversion specifying means interpreted by an instruction decoder.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2016
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2017
    Assignee: Renesas Electronics Corporation
    Inventors: Hideaki Kido, Shoji Muramatsu, Hiroyuki Hamasaki, Akihiro Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 9734581
    Abstract: An on-vehicle control device includes: an image acquiring unit that acquires an image from an image-capturing device that captures the image of surroundings of a vehicle; an overhead view image generating unit that generates an overhead view image from the image acquired by the image acquiring unit, the overhead view image being a plan view of the surroundings of the vehicle seen from above the vehicle; a white line recognizing unit that recognizes possible white lines on a road surface in the overhead view image; a white line information saving unit that saves information including positional information of the possible white lines recognized by the white line recognizing unit; a white line position predicting unit that predicts a position of a possible white line to be reached, based on information about a previous possible white line saved by the white line information saving unit and vehicle behavior information; and a white line judging unit that excludes, among the possible white lines recognized by the
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 21, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2017
    Assignee: Clarion Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Shoji Muramatsu, Akira Utagawa, Takehito Ogata, Satoshi Suzuki
  • Patent number: 9726883
    Abstract: A three-dimensional object detection has an image capturing device, an image conversion unit, a three-dimensional object detection unit, a three-dimensional object assessment unit, first and second foreign matter detection units and a controller. The image capturing device captures images rearward of a vehicle. The three-dimensional object detection unit detects three-dimensional objects based on image information. The three-dimensional object assessment unit assesses whether or not a detected three-dimensional object is another vehicle. The foreign matter detection units detect whether or not foreign matter has adhered to a lens based on the change over time in luminance values for each predetermined pixel of the image capturing element and the change over time in the difference between an evaluation value and a reference value. The controller outputs control commands to the other means to suppress the assessment of foreign matter as another vehicle when foreign matter has been detected.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 12, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2017
    Assignees: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd, Clarion Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Osamu Fukata, Yasuhisa Hayakawa, Masayuki Takemura, Akira Utagawa, Masahiro Kiyohara, Shoji Muramatsu, Kota Irie
  • Patent number: 9721460
    Abstract: An in-vehicle surrounding environment recognition device includes: a photographic unit that photographs a road surface around a vehicle and acquires a photographic image; an application execution unit that recognizes another vehicle on the basis of the photographic image, and detects a relative speed of the other vehicle with respect to the vehicle; a reflection determination unit that, on the basis of the photographic image, determines upon presence or absence of a reflection of a background object from the road surface; a warning control unit that controls output of a warning signal on the basis of the result of recognition of the other vehicle; and a warning prevention adjustment unit that suppresses output of the warning signal on the basis of the relative speed of the other vehicle, if it has been determined that there is the reflection of the background object from the road surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 11, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 1, 2017
    Assignees: Clarion Co., Ltd., Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Masayuki Takemura, Akira Utagawa, Shoji Muramatsu, Masahiro Kiyohara, Yasuhisa Hayakawa, Osamu Fukata
  • Patent number: 9715633
    Abstract: Provided is a vehicle-mounted image processing device capable of recognizing the outside of a vehicle based on an image taken by a vehicle-mounted camera more precisely. A vehicle-mounted image processing device of the present invention includes: an image acquisition unit (12) that acquires through-images (21) to (24) taken by cameras (1) to (4) disposed on front, rear and sides of a vehicle (10); a bird's eye view image generation unit (13) that converts the acquired through images (21) to (24) to generate a bird's eye view image (25); a parking line recognition unit (15) that performs parking line recognition processing to recognize a parking line WL based on at least one of the through-images (21) to (24) and the bird's eye view image (25).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 27, 2013
    Date of Patent: July 25, 2017
    Assignee: Clarion Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Takehito Ogata, Masahiro Kiyohara, Satoshi Suzuki, Shoji Muramatsu
  • Patent number: 9690996
    Abstract: An on-vehicle image processor includes an imager mounted on a vehicle, an image convertor and compositor that converts images imaged by the imager into overhead images, a white line candidate area detector that detects a white line candidate area estimated to constitute a parking frame, an endpoint position detector that detects positions of endpoints, a vehicle behavior measurer that measures a movement amount of the vehicle, an endpoint movement position predictor that predicts moved positions of the endpoints detected by endpoint position detector, an endpoint movement amount judger, an endpoint position storage, a distance calculator that judges a degree of proximity of the endpoints, an information output device, an endpoint position oblivion judger that deletes the position of the endpoints satisfying a predetermined condition, a parking frame detector that detects a parking frame from the image, an accelerator opening degree detector and a vehicle behavior controller.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 21, 2013
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2017
    Assignee: Clarion Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Akira Utagawa, Masahiro Kiyohara, Takehito Ogata, Satoshi Suzuki, Shoji Muramatsu, Yasuhisa Hayakawa, Osamu Fukata, Akira Morimoto