These advanced image sensors enhance monitoring of vehicle occupants by capturing the scene as illuminated from the camera, eliminating unpredictable external effects such as sunlight or street lighting.
Their superior image quality sharpens the responses of driver-monitoring systems, especially under near-infrared illumination close to 940nm, and makes possible new features, such as assessing driver attention, passenger comfort or child behaviour. The sensors embed ST’s automotive global shutter technology that reduces the illumination power consumption, even in high dynamic range mode.
The sensing accuracy also helps autonomous-driving systems assess a human driver’s fitness to take over any time during a journey, easing transitions between manual and autonomous driving modes for greater comfort and safety.
Software developer, Jungo, has used its driver-monitoring software to leverage the crisp, clear images from ST’s sensors to monitor the position and movements of all occupants, assessing the driver’s condition and accurately surveying the location and movements of other vehicle occupants.
The sensors are currently sampling, and ST is working with lead customers to facilitate adoption in new driver-assistance systems for next generations of vehicles.
