Using Difference Images to Detect Pedestrian Signal Changes

Abstract

This paper describes a method of using camera images to detect changes in the display status of pedestrian traffic signals. In much of the research previously done on signal detection, the color or shape of images or machine learning has been used to estimate the signal status. However, it is known that these methods are greatly affected by occlusion and changes in illumination. We propose a method of detecting, using multiple image sequences captured over time, changes in appearance that occur when a signal changes. If this method is used, the position and the status of the traffic light can be accurately detected as long as it appears in the image, even if its relative position or the lighting conditions in the area changes. In this paper, we first describe how pedestrian signals are seen when difference images are used, and we propose an algorithm for detecting when a signal changes. Then, the effectiveness of the proposed method is confirmed through verification tests.