Systems, apparatuses, and methods for controlling audiovisual apparatuses

• US 10,165,171 B2
• Filed: 01/22/2017
• Issued: 12/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 01/22/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Coban Technologies Incorporated (Safe Fleet Holdings LLC)
• Original Assignee: Coban Technologies Incorporated (Safe Fleet Holdings LLC)
• Inventors: Boykin, Terry W.
• Primary Examiner(s): Vo, Tung T
• Application Number:
  US15/412,044
• Publication Number:
  US 20170214843A1
• Time in Patent Office: 702 Days
• Field of Search: 348158
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/66 Remote control of cameras or camera parts, e.g. by remote control devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/185 from a mobile camera, e.g. for remote control

Abstract

Systems and methods for automatically controlling audiovisual apparatuses. A portable camera and a docking module configured to wirelessly trigger the camera to activate/deactivate the buffering and storage of data captured by the camera.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

disposing a docking module in a vehicle;

disposing a portable camera remote from the docking module and wirelessly linking the portable camera with the docking module, the portable camera configured to capture image data, the portable camera comprising;

a buffer to temporarily hold the captured image data in a continuous circulating stream; and

a memory to store captured image data received from the buffer; and

if the portable camera is located within a specified distance of the docking module, then;

(a) recognizing the portable camera when the portable camera is undocked and detecting operating conditions from signals sent by triggers, the triggers comprising buttons for manual activation, sensors to sense equipment activation, global positioning satellite circuitry to detect distance between the docking module and the portable camera, and a speedometer to detect velocity data of the vehicle; and

(b) receiving the signals and wirelessly sending commands from the docking module to the portable camera based on a desired configuration of operating conditions based on the triggers, the commands comprising;

a do not hold and do not store command to cause the portable camera to not hold the captured image data in the buffer and to not store the captured image data in the memory;

a buffer command to cause the portable camera to temporarily hold the captured image data in the buffer; and

a store command to trigger the portable camera to store to the memory the captured image data held in the buffer; and

if the portable camera has been triggered to store image data to the memory, then activating the portable camera to bypass the commands from the docking module based on the triggers and to continue storing the image data to the memory by overriding any command from the docking module to terminate storing the image data to the memory.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the commands sent to the portable camera also cause the portable camera to transfer to the memory any image data that is already held in the buffer when the commands are received by the portable camera.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the sensors comprise a vehicle light bar sensor configured to send a vehicle light bar signal to the docking module when a light bar of the vehicle is activated.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the sensors comprise a vehicle gun rack sensor configured to send a vehicle gun rack signal to the docking module when a gun is removed from a gun rack of the vehicle.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the sensors comprise a vehicle door sensor configured to send a vehicle door signal to the docking module when a door of the vehicle is opened.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the sending of one of the commands to the portable camera is triggered directly by the receiving, by the docking module, of one or more of the signals from one or more of the triggers, without any intermediate event between the receiving, by the docking module, of the one or more of the signals from the one or more of the triggers and the sending of the one of the commands to the portable camera.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving the signals comprises:

upon receipt, by the docking module, of an indication that a velocity of the vehicle exceeds a threshold velocity, sending a wireless command to the portable camera, the wireless command causing the portable camera to start storing to the memory image data captured by the portable camera.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the wireless command sent to the portable camera also causes the portable camera to transfer to the memory any image data that is already held in the buffer when the wireless command is received by the portable camera.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the sending of the wireless command to the portable camera is triggered directly by the receipt, by the docking module, of the indication that the velocity of the vehicle exceeds the threshold velocity, without any intermediate event between the receipt, by the docking module, of the indication that the velocity of the vehicle exceeds the threshold velocity and the sending of the wireless command to the portable camera.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the portable camera is configured to bypass the commands from the docking module and continue storing the image data to the memory if the portable camera has been activated, at a time when the portable camera is disposed outside of the vehicle, to store captured image data to the memory.

11. A system, comprising:

a docking module disposed in a vehicle;

a portable camera disposed remote from the docking module, the portable camera wirelessly linked with the docking module, the portable camera configured to capture image data, the portable camera comprising;

a buffer to temporarily hold the captured image data in a continuous circulating stream; and

a memory to store captured image data received from the buffer;

wherein the docking module is configured to perform the following operations if the portable camera is located within a specified distance of the docking module;

(a) to recognize the portable camera when the portable camera is undocked and to detect operating conditions from signals sent by triggers, the triggers comprising buttons for manual activation, sensors to sense equipment activation, global positioning satellite circuitry to detect distance between the docking module and the portable camera, and a speedometer to detect velocity data of the vehicle; and

(b) to receive the signals and to wirelessly send commands from the docking module to the portable camera based on a desired configuration of operating conditions based on the triggers, the commands comprising;

a do not hold and do not store command to cause the portable camera to not hold the captured image data in the buffer and to not store the captured image data in the memory;

a buffer command to cause the portable camera to temporarily hold the captured image data in the buffer; and

a store command to trigger the portable camera to store to the memory the captured image data held in the buffer; and

wherein the portable camera is configured such that, if the portable camera has been triggered to store image data to the memory, the portable camera is activatable to bypass the commands from the docking module based on the triggers and to continue storing the image data to the memory by overriding any command from the docking module to terminate storing the image data to the memory.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the wireless commands sent to the portable camera also cause the portable camera to transfer to the memory any image data that is already held in the buffer when the wireless commands are received by the portable camera.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the sensors comprise a vehicle light bar sensor configured to send a vehicle light bar signal to the docking module when a light bar of the vehicle is activated.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein the sensors comprise a vehicle gun rack sensor configured to send a vehicle gun rack signal to the docking module when a gun is removed from a gun rack of the vehicle.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein the sensors comprise a vehicle door sensor configured to send a vehicle door signal to the docking module when a door of the vehicle is opened.

16. The system of claim 11, wherein the sending of one of the commands to the portable camera is triggered directly by the receiving, by the docking module, of one or more of the signals from one or more of the triggers, without any intermediate event between the receiving, by the docking module, of the one or more of the signals from the one or more of the triggers and the sending of the one of the commands to the portable camera.

17. The system of claim 11, wherein the docking module is further configured to perform the following:

upon receipt, by the docking module, of an indication that a velocity of the vehicle exceeds a threshold velocity, send a wireless command to the portable camera, the wireless command causing the portable camera to start storing to the memory image data captured by the portable camera.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the wireless command sent to the portable camera also causes the portable camera to transfer to the memory any image data that is already held in the buffer when the wireless command is received by the portable camera.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the sending of the wireless command to the portable camera is triggered directly by the receipt, by the docking module, of the indication that the velocity of the vehicle exceeds the threshold velocity, without any intermediate event between the receipt, by the docking module, of the indication that the velocity of the vehicle exceeds the threshold velocity and the sending of the wireless command to the portable camera.

20. The system of claim 11, wherein the portable camera is configured to bypass the commands from the docking module based on the triggers and to continue storing the image data to the memory if the portable camera has been activated, at a time when the portable camera is disposed outside of the vehicle, to store captured image data to the memory.

21. The system of claim 11, wherein the portable camera is configured to dock with the docking module to:

(i) electrically charge the portable camera, (ii) enable data transfer to or from the portable camera through the docking module, or (iii) enable data exchange between the portable camera and the docking module.