1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a camera system for detecting an environment of a motor vehicle.
2. Description of Related Art
Camera systems for motor vehicles are generally known. For example, there are camera systems which are used for detecting an environment of a motor vehicle within the framework of a driver-assistance system. The image data of the vehicle environment recorded with the aid of the camera system can be used to aid a driver, e.g., in the form of a night-vision aid, for detecting traffic signs or road lane markings, or for monitoring traffic. In addition, it is known to use camera systems for detecting the state of a vehicle window.
Published German patent application document DE 103 23 560 A1 discloses a camera system for a motor vehicle, which is disposed in the interior of a vehicle, on a vehicle window, and records a region in front of the vehicle or a vehicle environment with the aid of a lens. With the help of a reflecting mirror, light incident approximately vertically above the motor vehicle is deflectable to the lens and thus able to be recorded by the image sensor. This light detected by the image sensor is evaluated in order to determine a brightness of the environment. The advantage of this system is that no additional light sensor is required for determining the brightness of the environment.
Published German patent application document DE 10 2005 000 650 A1 discloses another camera system for a motor vehicle for detecting an environment of a motor vehicle. The camera has an image sensor and camera optics which images the vehicle environment in clear detail on the image sensor. The camera system is disposed in a vehicle interior, on a vehicle window. Furthermore, the camera system includes a light source, in this case, an LED, with whose aid a subregion of the window is able to be illuminated. The image sensor is shielded from the light source by a reflecting mirror, in such a way that a portion of the illuminated window is able to be detected through a small subregion of the image sensor, the rest of the region of the image sensor being used for detecting the vehicle environment. The segment of the window that is able to be illuminated by the light source and detectable by the image sensor can be analyzed in order to determine wetting of the window by rain drops within the framework of a rain sensor function.