Application of infrared night vision technology in the field of vehicle driving safety

Many automobile manufacturers have installed visible light cameras on their vehicles for obstacle detection. However, visible light cameras are not ideal for target detection in conditions with low visibility such as nighttime and cloudy days. In order to overcome the shortcomings of visible light, there is more and more research on infrared night vision vehicle assistance systems.

Night vision systems based on infrared sensors have many advantages, which are specifically reflected in the following aspects:
① The infrared night vision system receives infrared radiation from external targets for imaging and does not depend on the lighting conditions of the scene. Any object with a temperature higher than absolute zero will radiate infrared rays.
② Compared with visible light cameras, the resolution, imaging effect and cost-effectiveness of infrared thermal imaging cameras are constantly improving, and more and more monitoring scenes are beginning to use infrared cameras.
③The infrared night vision device has the ability to work all-weather, which can significantly reduce the risk of driving at night and help it output the road conditions ahead in conditions of low human eye visibility such as total darkness, rain, snow, haze, and glare from oncoming traffic lights. The clear thermal image effectively improves the driver's visual range, avoids collisions with vehicles, pedestrians and obstacles, and effectively improves driving safety.
For the above reasons, vehicle-mounted infrared night vision technology has received great attention from major domestic and foreign automobile manufacturers and research institutions. As the technology matures, the application of vehicle-mounted infrared night vision systems is gradually promoted.

According to the principle of imaging, night vision systems are mainly divided into active night vision systems and passive night vision systems, among which low-light and infrared imaging are the most widely used night vision technologies. Low light generally refers to weak light at night or under low illumination conditions, with a wavelength of about 0.4-2μm. Low-light night vision technology, also known as image intensification technology, uses an image intensifier to convert weak or low-energy light into an enhanced optical image to achieve direct observation. Infrared night vision technology is divided into active infrared night vision technology and passive infrared night vision technology. Active infrared night vision technology is an infrared technology that uses infrared light to actively illuminate and use the infrared light reflected back from the target to observe. The corresponding equipment is an active night vision system. Passive infrared night vision technology is an infrared technology that relies on the infrared radiation emitted by the target itself to achieve observation. It converts the temperature distribution of the target surface that cannot be directly seen by the human eye into a thermal image representing the temperature distribution that can be seen by the human eye. Its equipment is a thermal imager.

For night vision technology on vehicle-mounted platforms, thermal imaging technology has better applicability compared to the other two technologies when taking into account the effects of night vision distance, bad weather, and strong light when meeting cars, and with the addition of uncooled infrared detectors With the development of the industry, its performance and price are constantly improving, and its applications are becoming more and more extensive.

The vehicle-mounted night vision system uses an infrared thermal imaging detector, which is installed on the front of the vehicle to receive infrared radiation from targets ahead. The night vision distance is about 300 m. The horizontal viewing angle reaches 24° at medium vehicle speeds. The system consists of infrared lights, infrared cameras and displays.

In the past decade or so, research on automotive night vision assisted driving systems has made a lot of progress, and related studies have shown that vehicle-mounted infrared night vision devices have a good effect in reducing night driving accidents. The demand for its corresponding products is growing rapidly, prompting major automobile manufacturers and suppliers of infrared night vision-related products to increase their research efforts. There are currently two main types of infrared night vision devices used in vehicles: active and passive. With the popularity of vehicle-mounted night vision systems, more and more companies and research institutions have begun research in related aspects, and vehicle-mounted infrared night vision technology has been better developed.

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