Location estimation and trajectory prediction of moving lateral vehicle using two wheel shapes information in 2-D lateral vehicle images by 3-D computer vision techniques

Abstract

A novel approach to location estimation and trajectory prediction of moving lateral vehicle locations for driving assistance using wheels shape information in single 2-D vehicle images by 3-D computer vision techniques is proposed. The location scheme is supposed to be performed on a vehicle with a camera mounted on the front bumper. An analytical solution is applied to estimate the location of a lateral vehicle. Firstly, the normal vectors of the car wheels in the camera coordinate system as well as the projections of the wheel centers in the image plane are derived. Then orientation angle of the lateral vehicle with respect to the driving vehicle is derived from the two vectors. Next, the image projections of the contact points of the wheels with the ground are detected. Finally, the image positions of the contact points are used to determine the 3D relative position of the moving vehicle with respect to the camera coordinate system by the back-projection principle. After the location of a moving lateral vehicle is obtained, a new approach is proposed to predict the trajectory of a lateral vehicle by using the spatial information of the two wheels in a single image. Real images are tested and experimental results show the effectiveness of the proposed approaches. The results are useful for car driving assistance and vehicle collision avoidance.