Importance

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Abstract

A vehicular stereoscopic imaging system provides a calculation of a distance between one or more sensors on a vehicle and a light source or object in a target scene remote from the vehicle. The imaging system may be useful in a headlamp dimmer control system, such that the headlamps, are modulated between their low and high beams in response to the calculated distance and intensities and/or colors of the light sources sensed by the sensors. The stereoscopic imaging system determines the distance to the object by comparing similarly classified signals received by each of two imaging array sensors in order to determine a relative position of an image representing the light source on each sensor. The distance to the object or light source may then be calculated as a function of the respective positions on the sensors, the focal lengths of focusing optics associated with each sensor and a predetermined separation distance between the axes of the two sensors. An associated accessory, such as a display, headlamps, windshield wipers, a warning indicator or signaling device and/or the brake system of the vehicle may be adjusted or activated in response to an output of the imaging system.

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First Claim