On-vehicle camera apparatus capturing image in front of vehicle and performing vehicle control
An on-vehicle camera apparatus capturing an image in front of a vehicle includes: a camera module outputting image data and a control circuit board. The camera module includes an optical element that refracts incident light so as to diverge or focus the incident light, and an image sensor element in which incident light transmitted through the optical element forms an image. The control circuit board executes, based on the image data outputted by the camera module, a recognition process recognizing a state in front of the own vehicle, and also executes at least two vehicle control processes among a headlight control process, a forward collision preventing process and a lane departure warning process, as a result of the recognition process. According to the on-vehicle camera apparatus, a resin-made lens is used for the optical element.
1. An on-vehicle camera apparatus mounted in a vehicle cabin, capturing an image in front of a vehicle, the apparatus comprising:
a camera module including an optical element that refracts incident light so as to diverge or focus the incident light, and an image sensor element in which incident light transmitted through the optical element forms an image, the camera module outputting image data based on a signal to which a photoelectric conversion is applied by the imaging sensor element; and
a control circuit board executing, based on the image data outputted by the camera module, a recognition process recognizing a state in front of the own vehicle, and executing, based on a recognition result of the recognition process, at least two vehicle control processes among a headlight control process, a forward collision preventing process and a lane departure warning process,
wherein a resin-made lens is used for the optical element,
the camera module further comprises an optical filter that attenuates the incident light entering the image sensor element, and
the optical filter has spectral characteristics which transmits light having a wavelength more than or equal to a predetermined lower cutoff wavelength, the predetermined lower cutoff wavelength being determined based on a change ratio of a transmittance of the resin-made lens which changes before/after yellowing of the resin-made lens.
2. The on-vehicle camera apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the lower cutoff wavelength is selected from a wavelength region ranging from 400 nm to 500 nm.
3. The on-vehicle camera apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the camera module further comprises optical filter that attenuates the incident light entering the image sensor element; and
the optical filter has spectral characteristics which transmits light having a wavelength less than or equal to a predetermined upper cutoff wavelength to cut off infrared light.
4. The on-vehicle camera apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein
the upper cutoff wavelength is selected from a wavelength region ranging from 650 nm to 750 nm.
5. The on-vehicle camera apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein an aspherical lens is used as the optical element.
6. The on-vehicle camera apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the camera module further comprises a lens barrel member accommodating a plurality of resin-made lenses; and
nitrogen is purged in the lens barrel member.
7. The on-vehicle camera apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the camera module further comprises RCCC Bayer which is a group of color filters, each of the color filters having a pass band which is a wavelength region corresponding to red or transparent color; and
each of the image sensor elements receives the incident light through any one of color filters which composes the RCCC Bayer.
8. The on-vehicle camera apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the camera module and the control circuit board are accommodated separately in different casings.
9. The on-vehicle camera apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the camera module is operable under a temperature condition of 105° C. or less.