OmniVision Technologies is bringing driver and passenger monitoring to mainstream vehicles with what it claims is a cost-effective 1-megapixel, high-speed global shutter image sensor. The digital imaging company says this is perfect for in-cabin camera modules in passenger vehicles, where driver state monitoring (DSM) and passenger-monitoring cameras need to be extremely small and unobtrusive, while complying with safety regulations.
The global automotive image sensor market is about to experience accelerating growth as a result of increased automation and the new safety regulations on level-3 semi-autonomous vehicles – so called conditional automation. (AutoInformed on SAE Autonomous Driving Levels)
Semi-autonomous vehicles use DSM to track the driver’s eye gaze and allow the vehicle to take control when the driver becomes drowsy or distracted. DSM is currently available in high-end cars, but over the next few years, the tracking will likely migrate into mainstream vehicles, a market segment that is much more cost-sensitive.
“Upcoming mandates will require that all vehicles sold in the EU come equipped with driver-state monitoring, beginning with 2022 models,” says Thilo Rausch, product marketing manager at OmniVision. “The OV9284 is the industry’s first image sensor with the right balance of cost effectiveness, high-quality imaging and advanced features, meeting the needs of the mainstream automotive market,” he claims.
The OV9284 also has what’s declared as the industry’s best near-infrared (NIR) quantum efficiency (QE) in a driver-monitoring image sensor, with 12% at 940 nm, which allows designers to achieve enough illumination with fewer LEDs. These reduce total system cost and power consumption. This sensor consumes only 90 mW of power at 60 frames per second (fps), which is a claimed 30% lower than the nearest competitor. The high-speed global shutter sensor with OmniPixel3-GS™ technology offers 1280 x 800 resolution at video speeds of up to 120 fps.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
Autonomous Vehicles – OmniVision is Watching with High-Speed Global Shutter Image Sensors
OmniVision Technologies is bringing driver and passenger monitoring to mainstream vehicles with what it claims is a cost-effective 1-megapixel, high-speed global shutter image sensor. The digital imaging company says this is perfect for in-cabin camera modules in passenger vehicles, where driver state monitoring (DSM) and passenger-monitoring cameras need to be extremely small and unobtrusive, while complying with safety regulations.
The global automotive image sensor market is about to experience accelerating growth as a result of increased automation and the new safety regulations on level-3 semi-autonomous vehicles – so called conditional automation. (AutoInformed on SAE Autonomous Driving Levels)
Semi-autonomous vehicles use DSM to track the driver’s eye gaze and allow the vehicle to take control when the driver becomes drowsy or distracted. DSM is currently available in high-end cars, but over the next few years, the tracking will likely migrate into mainstream vehicles, a market segment that is much more cost-sensitive.
“Upcoming mandates will require that all vehicles sold in the EU come equipped with driver-state monitoring, beginning with 2022 models,” says Thilo Rausch, product marketing manager at OmniVision. “The OV9284 is the industry’s first image sensor with the right balance of cost effectiveness, high-quality imaging and advanced features, meeting the needs of the mainstream automotive market,” he claims.
The OV9284 also has what’s declared as the industry’s best near-infrared (NIR) quantum efficiency (QE) in a driver-monitoring image sensor, with 12% at 940 nm, which allows designers to achieve enough illumination with fewer LEDs. These reduce total system cost and power consumption. This sensor consumes only 90 mW of power at 60 frames per second (fps), which is a claimed 30% lower than the nearest competitor. The high-speed global shutter sensor with OmniPixel3-GS™ technology offers 1280 x 800 resolution at video speeds of up to 120 fps.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn. He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe. Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap. AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks. Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.