Operations monitoring in an area
First Claim
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1. A system comprising:
- a monitoring assembly deployed to monitor an area including a restricted path periodically used by authorized vehicles, wherein the monitoring assembly includes;
a plurality of cameras including at least two cameras sensitive to radiation of distinct wavelength ranges, wherein the fields of view of the at least two cameras are substantially co-registered at the area; and
a computer system configured to monitor the area by performing a method including;
operating the plurality of cameras to acquire substantially concurrently image data of the area;
identifying, prior to an authorized vehicle entering the area, a set of relevant objects in the area using the image data acquired by the plurality of cameras, wherein the identifying includes evaluating a size of an object at least partially visible in the image data, a shape of the object, and a consistency of movement of the object, to classify the object as either a relevant object associated with at least one alert condition or an irrelevant object not associated with any alert condition;
updating tracking information for each object in the set of relevant objects; and
evaluating an alert condition using the updated tracking information for each of the set of relevant objects, wherein the evaluating includes evaluating a presence of a relevant object in a restricted zone corresponding to the restricted path with respect to the alert condition using tracking information regarding;
an amount of time the relevant object has been in the restricted zone, a manner in which the relevant object entered the restricted zone, and a manner in which the relevant object has been moving within the area.
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Abstract
An assembly for monitoring an area is provided. The assembly can include two or more cameras sensitive to radiation of distinct wavelength ranges. The fields of view of the cameras can be substantially co-registered at the area to be monitored. The assembly can include a computer system which can process the image data to monitor the area. The computer system can be configured to identify relevant objects present in the area, update tracking information for the relevant objects, and evaluate whether an alert condition is present using the tracking information.
38 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A system comprising:
a monitoring assembly deployed to monitor an area including a restricted path periodically used by authorized vehicles, wherein the monitoring assembly includes; a plurality of cameras including at least two cameras sensitive to radiation of distinct wavelength ranges, wherein the fields of view of the at least two cameras are substantially co-registered at the area; and a computer system configured to monitor the area by performing a method including; operating the plurality of cameras to acquire substantially concurrently image data of the area; identifying, prior to an authorized vehicle entering the area, a set of relevant objects in the area using the image data acquired by the plurality of cameras, wherein the identifying includes evaluating a size of an object at least partially visible in the image data, a shape of the object, and a consistency of movement of the object, to classify the object as either a relevant object associated with at least one alert condition or an irrelevant object not associated with any alert condition; updating tracking information for each object in the set of relevant objects; and evaluating an alert condition using the updated tracking information for each of the set of relevant objects, wherein the evaluating includes evaluating a presence of a relevant object in a restricted zone corresponding to the restricted path with respect to the alert condition using tracking information regarding;
an amount of time the relevant object has been in the restricted zone, a manner in which the relevant object entered the restricted zone, and a manner in which the relevant object has been moving within the area.- View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A method comprising:
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acquiring multispectral image data of an area on a computer system of a monitoring assembly including a plurality of cameras including at least two cameras sensitive to radiation of distinct wavelengths, wherein the area includes a restricted path periodically used by authorized vehicles; the computer system identifying, prior to an authorized vehicle entering the area, a set of relevant objects in the area using the multispectral image data, wherein the identifying includes evaluating a size of an object at least partially visible in the image data, a shape of the object, and a consistency of movement of the object, to classify the object as either a relevant object associated with at least one alert condition or an irrelevant object not associated with any alert condition; the computer system updating tracking information for each object in the set of relevant objects; the computer system evaluating an alert condition using the updated tracking information for each of the set of relevant objects, wherein the evaluating includes evaluating a presence of a relevant object in a restricted zone corresponding to the restricted path with respect to the alert condition using tracking information regarding;
an amount of time the relevant object has been in the restricted zone, a manner in which the relevant object entered the restricted zone, and a manner in which the relevant object has been moving within the area; andthe computer system performing an action response to evaluating a presence of an alert condition. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. An at-grade railroad crossing comprising:
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a road intersecting with railroad tracks; and a monitoring assembly deployed to monitor the railroad crossing, wherein the monitoring assembly includes; a first camera sensitive to near infrared and visible radiation, wherein each image acquired by the first camera is based on sensed near infrared and visible radiation; a second camera sensitive to infrared radiation, wherein the fields of view of the first and second cameras are substantially co-registered at the intersection of the road and the railroad tracks; and a computer system configured to monitor the railroad crossing by performing a method including; identifying, prior to a rail vehicle using the railroad tracks entering the area, a set of relevant objects in the area using image data substantially concurrently acquired by the first and second cameras, wherein the identifying includes evaluating a size of an object at least partially visible in the image data, a shape of the object, and a consistency of movement of the object, to classify the object as either a relevant object associated with at least one alert condition or an irrelevant object not associated with any alert condition; updating location and tracking information for each object in the set of relevant objects; and evaluating an alert condition using the location and tracking information for each of the set of relevant objects and an amount of time until a train next uses the railroad crossing, wherein the evaluating includes evaluating a presence of a relevant object in a restricted zone with respect to the alert condition using tracking information regarding;
an amount of time the relevant object has been in the restricted zone, a manner in which the relevant object entered the restricted zone, and a manner in which the relevant object has been moving within the area. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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Specification