IP Library › Granted Patent US 10,421,400
Granted Patent B2
US 10,421,400 · App. 15/535,808 · Granted Sep 24, 2019

Surroundings monitoring system for work vehicle, work vehicle, and surroundings monitoring method for work vehicle

Inventors: Masaaki Imaizumi (Tokyo, JP); Takeshi Kurihara (Tokyo, JP); Masataka Ozaki (Tokyo, JP)
Assignee: Komatsu Ltd.
B60R1/00E02F9/24E02F9/26H04N7/18H04N7/181B60R2300/105B60R2300/607B60R2300/802
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 10,421,400
App. No.
15/535,808
Granted
Sep 24, 2019
Kind
B2
Abstract

A surroundings monitoring system for a work vehicle includes a bending angle data acquirer acquiring bending angle data between a vehicle body front and rear portions, and a shot image data acquirer acquiring shot images respectively shot by multiple cameras, and a bird's eye image compositor performing image processing of a plurality of the shot image data to generate a bird's eye image, and a storage storing representative images of the work vehicle respectively belong to multiple bending angle ranges between the vehicle body front and rear portions, and a determiner determining, from the multiple bending angle ranges, a bending angle range to which the bending angle belongs, and a selector selecting, from a plurality of the representative images, a representative image that belongs to the determined bending angle range, and a display controller causing a display to simultaneously display the generated bird's eye image and the selected representative image.

Claims (24)

1. A surroundings monitoring system for a work vehicle that comprises a vehicle body front portion, a vehicle body rear portion, and a joint mechanism that bendably couples the vehicle body front portion and the vehicle body rear portion, the surroundings monitoring system for a work vehicle comprising:

a bending angle data acquisition unit that acquires bending angle data that indicates a bending angle between the vehicle body front portion and the vehicle body rear portion detected by a detector mounted on the work vehicle;

a shot image data acquisition unit that acquires shot images respectively shot by multiple cameras mounted on the work vehicle including a camera which shoots an image of a ground surface between a bucket and front tires of the vehicle body such that ends on both sides of the bucket and front portions of the front tires are included in a shot image in a state where a lowering operation of a bucket boom has been performed so as to bring the bucket into contact with the ground surface;

a bird's eye image composition unit that performs image processing of a plurality of the shot image data to generate a bird's eye image of surroundings of the work vehicle;

a storage unit that stores representative images of the work vehicle respectively belong to multiple bending angle ranges between the vehicle body front portion and the vehicle body rear portion;

a determination unit that determines, from the multiple bending angle ranges, a bending angle range to which the bending angle belongs;

a selection unit that selects, from a plurality of the representative images, a representative image that belongs to the bending angle range determined by the determination unit; and

a display control unit that causes a display device to simultaneously display the bird's eye image generated by the bird's eye image composition unit and the representative image selected by the selection unit,

wherein

the vehicle body front portion bends leftward and rightward with respect to the vehicle body rear portion,

the multiple bending angle ranges are defined between a first threshold bending angle on a right side and a second threshold bending angle on a left side so as not to overlap with each other, and

the representative images are defined, one for each of the multiple bending angle ranges.

2. The surroundings monitoring system for a work vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the display control unit causes the display device to display the representative image selected by the selection unit in a central portion of a display screen of the display device, and to display the bird's eye image around the representative image on the display screen.

3. The surroundings monitoring system for a work vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the display control unit causes the representative image and the bird's eye image to be displayed in a first area of the display screen, and causes the shot image to be displayed in a second area of the display screen adjacent to the first area.

4. The surroundings monitoring system for a work vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the representative image indicates a state of the work vehicle of which the vehicle body front portion bends by the bending angle that is a median of the bending angle range.

5. The surroundings monitoring system for a work vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein

the bending angle ranges include a reference bending angle range including a bending angle of a zero degree, a plurality of right bending angle ranges on a right side of the reference bending angle range, and a plurality of left bending angle ranges on a left side of the reference bending angle range,

a bending angle that defines a right end of the reference bending angle range and a bending angle that defines a left end thereof are equal, and

a size of the plurality of right bending angle ranges and a size of the plurality of left bending angle ranges are equal.

6. The surroundings monitoring system for a work vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the representative images are defined, one for each of a right outer bending angle range on a right side of the first threshold bending angle, and a left outer bending angle range on a left side of the second threshold bending angle.

7. The surroundings monitoring system for a work vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein

the display device is provided separately from the work vehicle, and

the shot image shot by the camera and transmitted from the work vehicle via a wireless communication system and the selected representative image are simultaneously displayed on the display device.

8. A work vehicle comprising the surroundings monitoring system for a work vehicle according to claim 1 .

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jun 14, 2017
From: IMAIZUMI, MASAAKI; KURIHARA, TAKESHI; OZAKI, MASATAKA
To: KOMATSU LTD.
Reel/Frame 042704/0408 →
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20180222390A1 · Aug 9, 2018
Cited By (2)
US 12,590,442 US 12,637,840