1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle surrounding area imaging system that determines whether or not to display an image or image of a side of one's own automobile.
2. Background Information
Conventionally, technology that displays images of the rear side of one's own automobile is known. One example of such conventional technology is disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2000-238594. In this technology, a determination is made as to whether or not one's own automobile has entered into a region that requires an image display, that requires a display of an applicable image, (for example, an intersection) based on the driving actions of a driver.
When the determination is made that one's own automobile has entered into the region that requires an image display, the technology photographs the rear side of one's own automobile to acquire an image of the rear side of the automobile and then displays the acquired image in a monitor inside the automobile cabin. This makes it possible for the driver of one's own automobile to view the image and verify the conditions at the rear sides of one's own automobile.
In view of the above, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art from this disclosure that there exists a need for an improved vehicle surrounding area imaging system. This invention addresses this need in the art as well as other needs, which will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this disclosure.