VIDEO CAMERA APPARATUS FOR WHOLE SPACE MONITOR

• US 20070153092A1
• Filed: 01/05/2006
• Published: 07/05/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 01/05/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Leadtek Research, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Leadtek Research, Inc.
• Inventors: Chen, Yu-Min, Yang, Chin-Tien, Chen, Hung-Jen, Lin, Chi-Ming, Cheng, Yi-Jen, Cheng, Yu-Sheng, Hsu, Yi-Shiuan, Chen, Hui-Shan, Weng, Cheng-Hung, Lin, Chan-Sheng, Lee, Sheng-Chia, Chan, I-Hao, Lin, Ruei-Shiang
• Application Number:
  US11/306,635
• Publication Number:
  US 20070153092A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/218.100
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19626 optical details, e.g. lenses, mirrors or multiple lenses
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19628 of wide angled cameras and camera groups, e.g. omni-directional cameras, fish eye, single units having multiple cameras achieving a wide angle view
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/1963 Arrangements allowing camera rotation to change view, e.g. pivoting camera, pan-tilt and zoom [PTZ]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/698 for achieving an enlarged field of view, e.g. panoramic image capture
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/183 for receiving images from a single remote source

Abstract

A video camera apparatus for whole space monitoring is provided, which includes a lens module having a plurality of lenses, a calculation unit, and a processing unit. The lens module captures images from different directions and generates a plurality of image data, then outputs the image data to the calculation unit. The calculation unit calculates the received image data and outputs the image data to the processing unit. The processing unit compresses the image data according to the output of the calculation unit and outputs the compressed image data to the host apparatus.

Claims

1. A video camera apparatus for whole space monitoring, used for transferring the captured images to a host apparatus, the video camera apparatus comprising:

a lens module, having a plurality of lenses for capturing images from different directions and producing a plurality of image data;

a calculation unit, used for receiving the image data and calculating the received image data; and

a processing unit, used for compressing the image data according to the output of the calculation unit and outputting the result to the host apparatus.

2. The video camera apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the processing unit compresses and combines all the image data.

3. The video camera apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the processing unit compresses and combines part of the image data.

4. The video camera apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the processing unit compresses the image data respectively.

6. The video camera apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the decoding device comprises:

a second calculation unit, used for dividing image frames of different formats according to the data format transferred from the processing unit; and

a decompressing unit, used for decompressing the output of the second calculation unit.

7. The video camera apparatus as claimed in claim 6, wherein the images of different formats include an image of all the image data combined and compressed, an image of part of the image data combined and compressed, and an image individually compressed.

5. A video camera apparatus for whole space monitoring, comprising:

a lens module, having a plurality of lenses for capturing images from different directions and producing a plurality of image data;

a first calculation unit, used for receiving the image data and calculating the received image data;

a processing unit, used for compressing the image data according to the output of the first calculation unit; and

a decoding device, used for receiving the output of the processing unit through a transmission interface, and for decompressing the output of the processing unit.

8. The video camera apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein the transmission interface includes wire or wireless Internet.

9. The video camera apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein the transmission interface includes LAN.

10. The video camera apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein the processing unit compresses and combines all the image data.

11. The video camera apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein the processing unit compresses and combines part of the image data.

12. The video camera apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein the processing unit compresses the image data respectively.

13. A video camera lens module, comprising:

a first fixing portion, having a first bonding surface and a second bonding surface;

a first rotating portion, being attached to the first bonding surface rotationally; and

a plurality of first lenses, being mounted on the first rotating portion together to capture images from different locations.

14. The video camera lens module as claimed in claim 13 further comprising:

a second fixing portion, having a third bonding surface and a fourth bonding surface;

a second rotating portion, being attached to the third bonding surface rotationally;

a plurality of second lenses, being mounted on the second rotating portion together.

15. The video camera lens module as claimed in claim 14, wherein a first predetermined angle is equal to a second predetermined angle.

16. The video camera lens module as claimed in claim 14, wherein the second lenses are used for capturing images from the upper half of a space.

17. The video camera lens module as claimed in claim 13, wherein the first lenses are used for capturing images from the lower half of a space.

18. The video camera lens module as claimed in claim 13, wherein the number of the first lenses is equal to the number of the second lenses.