Monitoring and presenting video surveillance data

• US 20060221184A1
• Filed: 04/04/2006
• Published: 10/05/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 04/05/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: 3VR Security Incorporated (Identiv, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: 3VR Security Incorporated (Identiv, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hale, Shannon P., Haupt, Gordon T., Russell, Stephen G., Vallone, Robert P., Wells, Michael E.
• Granted Patent: US 7,843,491 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/155
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19682 Graphic User Interface [GUI] presenting system data to the user, e.g. information on a screen helping a user interacting with an alarm system
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19693 using multiple video sources viewed on a single or compound screen

Abstract

A method of displaying video surveillance system information is disclosed. Video clips associated with events are represented by event cards. The event cards include frames selected from the video clips associated with the events. Event cards include metadata, and can be annotated. Display of overlapping event cards causes a compressed event card to be displayed. Selection of a compressed event card dynamically expands the compressed event card to display a paneled event card.

Claims

1. A method of displaying video surveillance system information, comprising performing a machine-executed operation involving instructions, wherein the machine-executed operation is at least one of:

A) sending said instructions over transmission media;

B) receiving said instructions over transmission media;

C) storing said instructions onto a machine-readable storage medium; and

D) executing the instructions;

wherein said instructions are instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform;

capturing a video stream from a camera of the video surveillance system;

detecting an event;

selecting an event video clip, from the video stream, that is associated with the event;

generating a representation of the event video clip using data from the event video clip; and

displaying the representation of the event video clip.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving user input associated with the representation; and

in response to the user input, playing the event video clip.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein generating a representation of the event video clip comprises:

selecting at least one frame from the event video clip; and

storing the selected at least one frame in an event card;

wherein displaying the representation of the event video clip comprises displaying the event card.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein selecting at least one frame from the event video clip comprises:

selecting a first frame from a first portion of the event video clip;

selecting a second frame from a second portion of the event video clip; and

storing the first and second frames in an event card;

wherein the first portion is different from the second portion.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the first portion of the event video clip is a beginning portion, and the second portion of the event video clip is an ending portion.

6. The method of claim 4, additionally comprising selecting a third frame from a third portion of the event video clip and storing the third frame in the event card, wherein the third portion is different from the first portion and the second portion.

7. The method of claim 3, wherein storing the at least one frame comprises storing a first selected frame in a first event card and a second selected frame in a second event card, wherein the first selected frame is different from the second selected frame.

8. The method of claim 3, wherein storing the at least one frame in an event card stores a first selected frame in the event card, additionally comprising storing a second selected frame associated with the event card separately from the event card, wherein the first selected frame is different from the second selected frame.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein selecting the event card additionally comprises displaying the second selected frame.

10. The method of claim 3, wherein generating a representation of the event video clip comprises selecting at least one frame from the event video clip that depicts a motion relative to other frames from the event video clip, wherein characteristics of the motion satisfy one or more criteria.

11. The method of claim 3, wherein generating a representation of the event video clip comprises:

selecting at least one frame from the event video clip that contains an image of a face;

determining a best view of the face in the selected at least one frame; and

storing the determined best view of the selected at least one frame in an event card.

12. The method of claim 1, additionally comprising storing metadata about the event with the representation of the event video clip, wherein displaying the representation of the event video clip additionally comprises displaying the stored metadata.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting an event comprises receiving event notification from an external source.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting an event comprises detecting motion in the video stream.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting an event comprises detecting a face in the video stream.

16. The method of claim 1, additionally comprising receiving an annotation and storing the annotation with the event representation.

17. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing one or more controls for sorting the representations of each event in a plurality of events based on at least one of the following criteria:

a selection of one or more cameras from a set of one or more cameras that captured the plurality of events, a specified time period, and the type of said each event, wherein the type includes at least one of the following types;

motion event, face event, and alert event.

18. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing one or more controls for searching across a plurality of events based on at least one of the following criteria:

a selection of one or more cameras from a set of one or more cameras that captured the plurality of events, a specified time period, and the type of said each event, wherein the type includes at least one of the following types;

motion event, face event, and alert event.

19. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing one or more controls for scanning through a plurality of events, wherein the plurality of events were captured from a particular camera or a plurality of cameras.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the one or more controls comprise at least one of the following:

a first button for displaying an event that precedes in time a currently selected event from the plurality of events, and a second button for displaying an event that follows in time the currently selected event.

21. A method of displaying event card representations of events in a surveillance system, comprising performing a machine-executed operation involving instructions, wherein the machine-executed operation is at least one of:

A) sending said instructions over transmission media;

B) receiving said instructions over transmission media;

C) storing said instructions onto a machine-readable storage medium; and

D) executing the instructions;

wherein said instructions are instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform;

detecting a first event;

representing the first event in a timeline with a first event card;

detecting a second event after the first event;

representing the second event in the timeline with a second event card; and

if the second event card overlaps the first event card, then representing the first event in the timeline with a first compressed event card.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein a selection of the first compressed event card causes the first compressed event card to expand to the first event card, temporarily overlapping the second event card.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the selection of the expanded first event card causes at least one of the following:

displaying a segment of video associated with the first event and displaying metadata associated with the first event.

24. The method of claim 21, wherein first event card comprises an event card containing at least one frame from an event video clip associated with the first detected event.

25. The method of claim 21, additionally comprising:

detecting a third event after the second event;

representing the third event in the timeline with a third event card; and

if the third event card overlaps the first and second event cards, then representing the first and second events in the timeline with a second compressed event card.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the second compressed event card indicates the number of events that are represented by the second compressed event card.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein a selection of the second compressed event card causes a means for selecting a representation of the first event or a representation of the second event to display.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein a selection of the representation of the first event causes the representation of the first event to expand temporarily to the first event card.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein a selection of the expanded first event card causes at least one of the following:

displaying a segment of video associated with the first event and displaying metadata associated with the first event.

30. A method of displaying event card representations of events in a video surveillance system, comprising performing a machine-executed operation involving instructions, wherein the machine-executed operation is at least one of:

A) sending said instructions over transmission media;

B) receiving said instructions over transmission media;

C) storing said instructions onto a machine-readable storage medium; and

D) executing the instructions;

wherein said instructions are instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform;

detecting a first event;

generating a first set of event cards for the first event, wherein a set of event cards includes a multi-panel event card and a single-panel event card;

representing the first event in a timeline with the multi-panel event card of the first set of event cards;

detecting a second event after the first event;

generating a second set of event cards for the second event;

representing the second event in the timeline with the multi-panel event card of the second set of event cards; and

if the multi-panel event card of the second set overlaps the multi-panel event card of the first set, then dynamically changing how the first event is represented in the timeline by ceasing to represent the first event with the multi-panel event card and representing the first event with the single-panel event card of the first set of event cards.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein generating a first set of event cards for the first event comprises:

selecting at least one frame from a first event video clip associated with the first event; and

generating at least one event card that comprises the at least one selected frame.

32. The method of claim 30, further comprising:

if the multi-panel event card of the second set overlaps the single-panel event card of the first set, then dynamically representing the first event in the timeline with a compressed event card associated with the first set of event cards.

33. The method of claim 32, further comprising:

receiving an indication that the compressed event card has been selected; and

dynamically expanding the compressed event card to display an event card in the first set of event cards to at least temporarily overlap the multi-panel event card of the second set of event cards.

34. The method of claim 32, additionally comprising:

if the multi-panel event card of the second set overlaps the compressed event card of the first set, then dynamically representing the first event and the second event in the timeline with a single multiple-event compressed event card.

35. The method of claim 34, further comprising:

receiving an indication that the multiple-event compressed event card has been selected; and

dynamically expanding the multiple-event compressed event card to display an interface for selecting either the first event or the second event.