Capturing camera

1. A capturing camera comprising:

a lens block that includes a lens for focusing light from a subject including a face of a person riding in a vehicle and a license plate of the vehicle;

an image sensor configured to perform a capturing process based on the light from the subject focused by the lens; and

a processor configured to generate a face image of the person riding in the vehicle and a license plate image of the vehicle, corresponding to a same vehicle, based on a captured image of the subject generated by the capturing process,

wherein the processor has the image sensor perform the capturing process using a plurality of capturing conditions in response to a performing of the capturing process based on the light from the subject, and

wherein the processor is configured to acquire, in time division, a first captured image obtained using a first capturing condition with a long exposure time at the image sensor, and a second captured image obtained using a second capturing condition with a short exposure time being shorter than the long exposure time at the image sensor, and to combine the face image extracted from the first captured image and the license plate image extracted from the second captured image to generate a composite image of the face image and the license plate image corresponding to the same vehicle.

2. The capturing camera according to claim 1 ,

wherein the processor is configured to extract the face image from the captured image of the subject, generated by the capturing process using a first capturing condition, and to extract the license plate image from the captured image of the subject, generated by the capturing process using a second capturing condition.

3. The capturing camera according to claim 2 ,

wherein in the first capturing condition, an exposure time in the image sensor is longer than a predetermined value, and

wherein in the second capturing condition, the exposure time in the image sensor is shorter than the predetermined value.

4. The capturing camera according to claim 1 , further comprising:

a communication unit configured to perform data communication with an external device,

wherein the processor has the external device record the face image and the license plate image corresponding to the same vehicle through the communication unit.

5. The capturing camera according to claim 1 ,

wherein an imaging surface of a first region of the image sensor, on which the person riding in the vehicle is captured, is formed of pixels with high sensitivity, and

wherein an imaging surface of a second region of the image sensor, on which the license plate of the vehicle is captured, is formed of pixels with low sensitivity being lower than the high sensitivity.

6. The capturing camera according to claim 1 ,

wherein the processor detects a windshield of the vehicle, based on a captured image of the subject, and raises the sensitivity of pixels in the captured image corresponding to the windshield detected in the captured image more than a predetermined value.

7. The capturing camera according to claim 1 , further comprising:

a sensor configured to detect a daytime mode or a night mode;

an illuminator configured to irradiate the subject with IR light in the night mode; and

a filter unit that supports a polarization filter that limits light from the subject received by the image sensor, and a band pass filter that passes the IR light so as to be switchable between the polarization filter and the band pass filter,

wherein in the daytime mode, the processor is configured to dispose the polarization filter on a front side of the image sensor, determine a vehicle type of the vehicle using a captured image based on the light from the subject passing the polarization filter, and rotate the polarization filter by a rotation angle corresponding to the vehicle type in response to the determined vehicle type.

8. The capturing camera according to claim 7 ,

wherein the lens block switchably supports an IR cut filter so as to switch a use and a non-use of the IR cut filter, and

wherein the processor is configured to dispose the IR cut filter on the front side of the image sensor, in the daytime mode.

9. The capturing camera according to claim 7 ,

wherein the processor, in the night mode, is configured to dispose the band pass filter on the front side of the image sensor, and generate a face image of a person riding in the vehicle and a license plate image of the vehicle, corresponding to the same vehicle, using a captured image based on the light from the subject passing through the band pass filter, for the IR light emitted from the illuminator.

10. The capturing camera according to claim 9 ,

wherein the band pass filter blocks light having a wavelength band of headlight emitted from the vehicle.

11. The capturing camera according to claim 9 ,

wherein the illuminator is configured to emit the IR light having an illuminance distribution in which an irradiation intensity of the IR light for the face of the person is higher than a predetermined irradiation reference intensity and the irradiation intensity of the IR light for the license plate is lower than the predetermined irradiation reference intensity.

12. The capturing camera according to claim 9 , further comprising:

a distance sensor configured to measure a distance from the capturing camera to the vehicle,

wherein based on a measurement result of the distance sensor, the processor has the image sensor perform the capturing process of the license plate when the vehicle is positioned at a first predetermined distance from the capturing camera, and the image sensor perform the capturing process of the face of the person when the vehicle is positioned at a second predetermined distance from the capturing camera.

13. The capturing camera according to claim 1 , further comprising:

a communication unit configured to perform data communication with an external device,

wherein the processor is configured to transmit the face image and the license plate image corresponding to the same vehicle to the external device through the communication unit to perform an image process on the face image and the license plate image.

14. A detection method, comprising:

focusing, by a lens, light from a subject including a face of a person riding in a vehicle and a license plate of the vehicle;

performing, by an image sensor, a capturing process based on the light from the subject focused by the lens; and

generating, by a processor, a face image of the person riding in the vehicle and a license plate image of the vehicle, corresponding to a same vehicle, based on a captured image of the subject generated by the capturing process,

wherein the capturing process is performed by the image sensor using a plurality of capturing conditions in the performing of the capturing process based on the light from the subject, and

wherein the processor is configured to acquire, in time division, a first captured image obtained using a first capturing condition with a long exposure time at the image sensor, and a second captured image obtained using a second capturing condition with a short exposure time being shorter than the long exposure time at the image sensor, and to combine the face image extracted from the first captured image and the license plate image extracted from the second captured image to generate a composite image of the face image and the license plate image corresponding to the same vehicle.