Video recorder

• US 20050068429A1
• Filed: 09/30/2003
• Published: 03/31/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intellectual Ventures Assets 192 LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: At&T Delaware Intellectual Property, Inc. (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Kreiner, Barrett Morris, Page, Joseph E. Jr.
• Granted Patent: US 7,505,673 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/231.600
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19606 Discriminating between target movement or movement in an area of interest and other non-signicative movements, e.g. target movements induced by camera shake or movements of pets, falling leaves, rotating fan
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19669 Event triggers storage or change of storage policy
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19671 Addition of non-video data, i.e. metadata, to video stream
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19676 Temporary storage, e.g. cyclic memory, buffer storage on pre-alarm
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/765 Interface circuits between an apparatus for recording and another apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/781 on disks or drums
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/85 on discs or drums
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/907 using static stores, e.g. storage tubes or semiconductor memories H04N5/91 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/183 for receiving images from a single remote source
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/7921 for more than one processing mode
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8042 involving data reduction
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8205 involving the multiplexing of an additional signal and the colour video signal

Abstract

A video recorder is disclosed for recording audio and video data of an event. The video recorder includes a processor communicating with memory. The memory stores audio and/or video data of an event. The video data includes a series of picture frames. A set of rules is also stored in the memory. The set of rules specifies either i) multiple regions of interest and/or ii) multiple regions of disinterest within a single picture frame. The set of rules dynamically varies a bitrate of the audio/video data associated with each region of interest and with each region of disinterest. The audio/video data is stored in the memory according to the bitrate specified by the set of rules.

Claims

1. A video recorder, comprising

a processor communicating with memory, the memory for storing at least one of i) video data of an event and ii) audio data of the event, the video data comprising a series of picture frames;

and

a set of rules stored in the memory, the set of rules specifying at least one of i) multiple regions of interest within a single picture frame and ii) multiple regions of disinterest within the single picture frame, the set of rules dynamically varying a bitrate of the video data associated with each region of interest and with each region of disinterest,

wherein the video data is stored in the memory according to the bitrate specified by the set of rules.

2. A video recorder according to claim 1, wherein the set of rules specifies multiple bitrates for the regions of interest.

3. A video recorder according to claim 1, wherein the set of rules specifies multiple bitrates for the regions of disinterest.

4. A video recorder according to claim 1, wherein the memory stores real-time video data of the event and provides time-delayed video data of the event, the time-delayed video data preceding the event.

5. A video recorder according to claim 1, wherein the memory stores real-time audio data of the event and provides time-delayed audio data of the event, the time-delayed audio data preceding the event.

6. A video recorder according to claim 1, further comprising a loop buffer, the loop buffer also storing at least one of the video data of the event and the audio data of the event, the loop buffer providing audio data and video data that precedes the event.

7. A video recorder according to claim 6, wherein the set of rules determines when to transfer the contents of the loop buffer to the memory.

8. A video recorder according to claim 1, wherein the memory comprises a mass-storage device, the mass storage device storing the video data of the event.

9. A video recorder according to claim 1, wherein the memory comprises an optical storage device.

10. A video recorder according to claim 1, wherein the memory comprises a memory card.

11. A video recorder according to claim 1, wherein the memory comprises a flash memory storage device.

12. A video recorder according to claim 1, wherein the video recorder interfaces with means for sensing the event and initiates video data of the event.

13. A video recorder according to claim 1, wherein the video recorder interfaces with means for sensing the event and initiates audio data of the event.

14. A video recorder according to claim 1, further comprising an interface to a communications network.

15. A video recorder according to claim 1, wherein the set of rules tags the video data with metadata, the metadata providing a description of a rule that caused the video data to be stored in the memory.

16. A video recorder according to claim 1, wherein the set of rules tags at least one region of interest with metadata, the metadata providing a description of a rule that caused the video data to be stored in the memory.

17. A video recorder according to claim 1, wherein the set of rules tags at least one region of disinterest with metadata, the metadata providing a description of a rule that caused the video data to be stored in the memory.

18. A video recorder, comprising:

a processor communicating with memory, the memory for storing at least one of audio data and video data of an event, the video data comprising a series of picture frames;

a loop buffer also storing at least one of the audio data and the video data of the event, the loop buffer also storing at least one of time-delayed audio data and time-delayed video data that precedes the event;

a set of rules stored in the memory, the set of rules specifying at least one of i) multiple regions of interest within a single picture frame, ii) multiple regions of disinterest within the single picture frame, and iii) when to transfer the contents of the loop buffer into the memory, the set of rules dynamically varying a bitrate of the video data associated with each region of interest, associated with each region of disinterest, and associated with the contents of the loop buffer,

wherein the video recorder provides both real-time and time-delayed audio data and video data of the event.

19. A video recorder according to claim 18, further comprising an interface to a communications network, the interface allowing the video recorder to transfer the audio data and the video data to a remote location via the communications network.

20. A video recorder according to claim 18, further comprising a user interface for configuring the video recorder.