Monitor system for monitoring suspicious object

• US 20050275721A1
• Filed: 06/13/2005
• Published: 12/15/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 06/14/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Victor Company of Japan Limited (JVC Kenwood Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Victor Company of Japan Limited (JVC Kenwood Corporation)
• Inventors: Ishii, Yusuke
• Application Number:
  US11/150,264
• Publication Number:
  US 20050275721A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/159
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/254 involving subtraction of images
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19608 Tracking movement of a target, e.g. by detecting an object predefined as a target, using target direction and or velocity to predict its new position
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19691 Signalling events for better perception by user, e.g. indicating alarms by making display brighter, adding text, creating a sound
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/183 for receiving images from a single remote source
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/188 Capturing isolated or intermittent images triggered by the occurrence of a predetermined event, e.g. an object reaching a predetermined position signal generation from motion picture films H04N5/253

Abstract

A monitor camera photographs a whole monitor area for capturing the photographed whole monitor area as high definition image data higher in resolution than a display screen. A new object detection/extraction unit detects a new object in the monitor area based on the high definition image data captured by the monitor camera, extracts partial image data of an area, which contains the new object, from the high definition image data, and obtains location information on the partial image data in relation to the high definition image data. A whole-monitor-area image data down-sampling unit down-samples the high definition image data to produce standard definition image data corresponding to the resolution of the display screen. An image enlargement unit enlarges the standard definition image data based on entered enlargement instruction information. An image combination unit overlaps the partial image data on image data, enlarged by the image enlargement unit, based on the location information and sends resulting image data to the display screen.

Claims

1. A monitor system comprising:

a display screen on which image data is displayed;

a high definition camera that photographs a whole monitor area for capturing the photographed whole monitor area as high definition image data higher in resolution than said display screen;

an object detection/extraction unit that detects a new object in the monitor area based on the high definition image data captured by said high definition camera, extracts partial image data of an area, which contains the new object, from the high definition image data, and obtains location information on the partial image data in relation to the high definition image data;

a whole image data down-sampling unit that down-samples the high definition image data to produce standard definition image data corresponding to the resolution of said display screen;

an image enlargement unit that enlarges the standard definition image data based on entered enlargement instruction information; and

an image combination unit that overlaps the partial image data on image data, enlarged by said image enlargement unit, based on the location information and sends resulting image data to said display screen.

2. The monitor system according to claim 1 wherein, when a plurality of new objects are detected in the monitor area, said object detection/extraction unit extracts a plurality of pieces of partial image data in a plurality of areas, each of which contains one of the plurality of new objects, from the high definition image data and obtains a plurality of pieces of location information on the high definition image data of the plurality of pieces of partial image data.

3. The monitor system according to claim 1 wherein said image enlargement unit enlarges the standard definition image data according to a ratio between a definition level of the high definition image data and the resolution of said display screen.

4. The monitor system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a partial image data down-sampling unit that down-samples the partial image data, extracted by said object detection/extraction unit, and sends the down-sampled partial image data to said image combination unit,

wherein said image enlargement unit enlarges the standard definition image data according to enlargement rate information included in the enlargement instruction information and said partial image data down-sampling unit down-samples the partial image data according to the enlargement rate information.

5. The monitor system according to claim 1 wherein

said object detection/extraction unit obtains the partial image data and the location information at each predetermined time and said whole image data down-sampling unit obtains the standard definition image data at said each predetermined time,

said monitor system further comprising:

an image data storage unit in which the standard definition image data, the partial image data, and the location information are stored, said standard definition image data, said partial image data, and said location information being obtained sequentially in time and made to correspond with each other in time; and

a control unit that sends the standard definition image data, stored in said image data storage unit, to said image enlargement unit sequentially in time in response to received reproduction instruction information and, at the same time, supplies the partial image data and the location information, stored in said image data storage unit, to said image combination unit sequentially in time.

6. The monitor system according to claim 5 wherein, when a plurality of new objects are detected in the monitor area, said object detection/extraction unit extracts a plurality of pieces of partial image data in a plurality of areas, each of which contains one of the plurality of new objects, from the high definition image data and obtains a plurality of pieces of location information on the high definition image data of the plurality of pieces of partial image data.

7. The monitor system according to claim 5, further comprising:

a partial image data down-sampling unit that down-samples the partial image data, obtained by said object detection/extraction unit at each predetermined time, at a plurality of predetermined rates and stores the down-sampled partial image data in said image data storage unit,

wherein, in response to enlargement rate information included in the enlargement instruction information, said control unit selects one of said plurality of pieces of partial image data stored in said image data storage unit and corresponding in time to the enlargement instruction information and supplies the selected one piece of partial image data to said image combination unit.

8. A monitor system comprising:

a remote terminal which is connected to a network and has a display screen where image data is displayed and from which enlargement instruction information is entered;

a high definition camera that photographs a whole monitor area for capturing the photographed whole monitor area as high definition image data higher in resolution than said display screen;

an object detection/extraction unit that detects a new object in the monitor area based on the high definition image data captured by said high definition camera, extracts partial image data of an area, which contains the new object, from the high definition image data, and obtains location information on the partial image data in relation to the high definition image data;

a whole image data down-sampling unit that down-samples the high definition image data to produce standard definition image data corresponding to the resolution of said display screen;

an image enlargement unit that enlarges the standard definition image data based on the enlargement instruction information entered from said remote terminal via said network;

an image combination unit that overlaps the partial image data on image data, enlarged by said image enlargement unit, based on the location information; and

a sending unit that sends image data, obtained by said image combination unit, to said remote terminal via said network.

9. The monitor system according to claim 8 wherein

said object detection/extraction unit obtains the partial image data and the location information at each predetermined time and said whole image data down-sampling unit obtains the standard definition image data at said each predetermined time, and

said remote terminal sends entered reproduction instruction information via said network,

said monitor system further comprising:

an image data storage unit in which the standard definition image data, the partial image data, and the location information are stored, said standard definition image data, said partial image data, and said location information being obtained sequentially in time and made to correspond with each other in time; and

a control unit that sends the standard definition image data, stored in said image data storage unit, to said image enlargement unit sequentially in time in response to the reproduction instruction information and, at the same time, supplies the partial image data and the location information, stored in said image data storage unit, to said image combination unit sequentially in time.