Driver assistance system for traffic sign recognition

1. An evaluation device for a driver assistance system for a vehicle, comprising:

an input for receiving image information recorded by a camera;

a first component for locating an image segment containing a predetermined shape in first image information received from the camera;

a second component configured to send to the camera an instruction to record the image segment with a higher contrast relative to the first image information and to request second image information, wherein the second image information corresponds to a new recording of the image segment located by said first component with better contrast than the first image information;

a third component configured to receive the second image information and to identify a traffic sign in the second image information; and

an output for outputting a signal relating to the traffic sign identified by the third component.

2. The evaluation device according to claim 1 , wherein the predetermined shape is a circle.

3. The evaluation device according to claim 1 , wherein the traffic sign is a speed limit traffic sign.

4. The evaluation device according to claim 1 , wherein the second image information corresponds to a new recording of a located image segment with a modified exposure time compared with the first image information.

5. The evaluation device according to claim 1 , wherein the second image information corresponds to a new recording of a located image segment with a different offset value from the first image information by adding constant values to the individual image points.

6. The evaluation device according to claim 1 , wherein the second image information corresponds to a new recording of a located image segment with modified amplification compared with the first image information.

7. The evaluation device according to claim 1 , wherein the second image information corresponds to a new recording of a located image segment with different High Dynamic Range parameters from the first image information.

8. The evaluation device according to claim 1 , wherein the first image information and the second image information have a common image depth.

9. The evaluation device according to claim 1 , wherein the signal relating to the traffic sign is a signal perceptible to a driver of the vehicle.

10. The evaluation device according to claim 1 , wherein the signal relating to the traffic sign is a signal that brings about an automatic reduction of a speed of the vehicle.

11. A driver assistance system for a vehicle, comprising: an evaluation device according to claim 1 and the camera connected to said evaluation device.

12. A computer program product for a vehicle assistance system for a vehicle, comprising computer-readable instructions stored in memory and being executable to:

locate an image segment containing a predetermined shape in first image information received from a camera;

send an instruction to the camera to re-record the image segment with a higher contrast than the images in the first image information and to request second image information, the second image information corresponding to a new recording of a located image segment with better contrast than the first image information;

identify a traffic sign in the second image information; and

output a signal relating to a traffic sign thus identified.

13. A method for operating a driver assistance system for a vehicle, the method which comprises:

locating an image segment containing a predetermined shape in first image information;

sending instructions to the camera to record the image regions with a higher contrast than the images and requesting second image information, the second image information corresponding to a new recording of a located image segment with better contrast than the first image information;

identifying a traffic sign in the second image information; and

outputting a signal relating to an identified traffic sign.