Method and system for capturing a wide-field image and a region of interest thereof

• US 20070064143A1
• Filed: 10/22/2004
• Published: 03/22/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 10/24/2003
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Winlight System Finance
• Original Assignee: Winlight System Finance
• Inventors: Soler, Daniel, Godefroy, Philippe
• Application Number:
  US10/552,349
• Publication Number:
  US 20070064143A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/335
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 13/06 Panoramic objectives; So-called "sky lenses" including panoramic objectives having reflecting surfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 13/16 for use in conjunction with image converters or intensifiers , or for use with projectors, e.g. objectives for projection TV
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/108 for sampling a portion of a beam or combining a small beam in a larger one, e.g. wherein the area ratio or power ratio of the divided beams significantly differs from unity, without spectral selectivity
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/14 operating by reflection only
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/32 Transforming X-rays cameras or camera modules for generating image signals from X-rays H04N23/30; circuitry of SSIS for transforming X-rays into image signals H04N25/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/181 for receiving images from a plurality of remote sources
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/185 from a mobile camera, e.g. for remote control

Abstract

This system captures an image acquired by a simply connected wide-field optical system (1) providing a first optical channel, this image being captured by a first video camera. A sampling optical system inserted into this first channel captures on a second video camera a narrow field corresponding to a region of interest of the wide field.

Claims

1. A system for capturing an image (42) acquired by a simply connected wide-field optical system (1) consisting of an afocal lens with angular enlargement of less than 1 and supplying a wide-field first light beam (4), the system comprising:

means for selecting from said first beam (4) a second light beam (4′

) corresponding to a narrow field within said wide field and showing a region of interest (52) of said image (42);

a first video camera (20) including a lens (21) adapted to capture said narrow-field second beam (4′

) with a first resolution;

means (5) for duplicating said wide-field first light beam (4) to produce a duplicate first beam (6); and

a second video camera (10) including a lens (11) adapted to capture the whole of said duplicate first beam (6) with a second resolution lower than said first resolution by a reduction coefficient defined by the ratio between said wide field and said narrow field,

said second video camera (10) and said first video camera (20) preferably having identical photosensitive element matrices (21, 22).

2. A capture system according to claim 1, characterized in that, said first video camera (20) being mobile, said selection means include means (60, 61, 71, 73) for positioning said first video camera (20) in a position (θ

x, θ

y) such that it receives said second beam (4′

).

3. A capture system according to claim 1, characterized in that, said first video camera (20) being stationary, said selection means include deflection means for deflecting said second beam (4′

) towards said first video camera (20).

4. A capture system according to claim 3, characterized in that said deflection means comprise a prism, a mirror or any type of diffraction system rotatable in said first beam (4).

5. A capture system according to claim 1, characterized in that the first video camera (20) includes an optical zoom system for defining the angular magnitude of said region of interest (52).

6. A capture system according to claim 1, characterized in that it further includes a station (43) for viewing said image (42) in the vicinity of control means (83) of said selection means.

7. A capture system according to claim 1, characterized in that it includes means for processing said image (42) adapted to detect a movement and/or a variation of luminous intensity in said image (42) and to command said selection means accordingly.

8. A capture system according to claim 1, characterized in that said optical system (1) and said first video camera (10) are adapted to capture first and second infrared light beams (4, 4′

).

9. A system for capturing an image covering a 360°

space, characterized in that it comprises two capture systems (A, A′

) according to claim 1 arranged back-to-back, the optical systems of the capture systems (A, A′

) being adapted to cover at least a half-space.

10. A system for capturing an image covering a 360°

space, characterized in that it comprises two capture systems (A, A′

) according to claim 2 arranged back-to-back, the optical systems of the capture systems (A, A′

) being adapted to cover at least a half-space.

11. A system for capturing an image covering a 360°

space, characterized in that it comprises two capture systems (A, A′

) according to claim 3 arranged back-to-back, the optical systems of the capture systems (A, A′

) being adapted to cover at least a half-space.

12. A system for capturing an image covering a 360°

space, characterized in that it comprises two capture systems (A, A′

) according to claim 4 arranged back-to-back, the optical systems of the capture systems (A, A′

) being adapted to cover at least a half-space.

13. A system for capturing an image covering a 360°

space, characterized in that it comprises two capture systems (A, A′

) according to claim 5 arranged back-to-back, the optical systems of the capture systems (A, A′

) being adapted to cover at least a half-space.

14. A system for capturing an image covering a 360°

space, characterized in that it comprises two capture systems (A, A′

) according to claim 6 arranged back-to-back, the optical systems of the capture systems (A, A′

) being adapted to cover at least a half-space.

15. A system for capturing an image covering a 360°

space, characterized in that it comprises two capture systems (A, A′

) according to claim 7 arranged back-to-back, the optical systems of the capture systems (A, A′

) being adapted to cover at least a half-space.

16. A system for capturing an image covering a 360°

space, characterized in that it comprises two capture systems (A, A′

) according to claim 8 arranged back-to-back, the optical systems of the capture systems (A, A′

) being adapted to cover at least a half-space.