DIGITAL VIDEO SYSTEM USING NETWORKED CAMERAS

• US 20100212024A1
• Filed: 02/18/2010
• Published: 08/19/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/14/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: JDS Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Joseph Robert Marchese
• Inventors: Marchese, Joseph Robert
• Granted Patent: US 8,185,964 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/27
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/5838 using colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/70 of video data
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19604 involving reference image or background adaptation with time to compensate for changing conditions, e.g. reference image update on detection of light level change
• 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 13/19645 Multiple cameras, each having view on one of a plurality of scenes, e.g. multiple cameras for multi-room surveillance or for tracking an object by view hand-over
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19656 Network used to communicate with a camera, e.g. WAN, LAN, Internet
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19673 Addition of time stamp, i.e. time metadata, to video stream
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/1968 Interfaces for setting up or customising the system
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19693 using multiple video sources viewed on a single or compound screen
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/14 Display of multiple viewports
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0654 using network fault recovery ring fault isolation or reconfiguration in loop networks without recovery actions by a network management system H04L12/437
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0677 Localisation of faults
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/613 for the control of the source by the destination control signals issued by the client directed to the server or network components specially adapted for selective content distribution H04N21/637
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2187 Live feed
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/234381 by altering the temporal resolution, e.g. decreasing the frame rate by frame skipping
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6175 involving transmission via Internet broadcast-related systems characterised by the transmission system being the Internet H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/816 involving special video data, e.g 3D video
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/631 Graphical user interfaces [GUI] specially adapted for controlling image capture or setting capture parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/661 : Transmitting camera control signals through networks, e.g. control via the Internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/695 : Control of camera direction for changing a field of view, e.g. pan, tilt or based on tracking of objects
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/77 : between a recording apparatus and a television camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/9205 : the additional signal being at least another television signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/181 : for receiving images from a plurality of remote sources

Abstract

A digital video system including a computer connected via a network to a number of video servers and cameras. The computer includes a program that provides a grid of display windows, each of which displays an image received from the camera associated with that window. The program sequentially polls each camera, accessing and displaying an image from the camera in its associated window. The program can access the cameras at different frame rates. The program stores image streams in a single file, concatenating each successive image onto the end of the file. The file is then indexed using SOI and EOI markers to permit fast access to individual images within the file. The program can monitor received video and automatically start recording upon detecting motion within the video stream. Motion detection is implemented by comparing color component values for pixels from different images.

Claims

1. A method of controlling access by a computer to a video server, comprising the steps of:

sending a request from a client computer to a video server over a network;

receiving from the video server a unique number stored in the video server, wherein the unique number is received by the client computer over the network;

determining that access to the video server is authorized by comparing the unique number received by the client computer to one or more authorized unique numbers;

in response to the determination, obtaining at the client computer one or more images from the video server; and

displaying the one or more images on a screen display of the client computer.

2. A method of controlling access by a computer to a hardware device, comprising the steps of:

executing a computer program stored in computer readable form at a computer, the computer being connected to a hardware device via a network;

accessing the hardware device from the computer over the network using an IP address associated with the hardware device;

obtaining a MAC address from the hardware device over the network;

determining if the program is authorized to access the hardware device by validating the MAC address using data accessible to the computer; and

if the program is authorized to access the hardware device, then the method further comprises the steps of;

requesting data from the hardware device by the computer using the computer program; and

receiving the requested data at the computer.

3. A method of licensing a computer program on a per-device basis to prevent unauthorized use of the computer program with hardware devices, comprising the steps of:

identifying one or more authorized hardware devices, each having a MAC address;

providing a computer program in computer readable form, wherein the computer program is operable upon execution by a computer to permit a user of the computer to input network address information concerning a specific hardware device accessible to the computer via a network;

embedding the MAC address(es) of the authorized hardware device(s) into the computer program; and

licensing the computer program to a user based on the number of MAC addresses embedded in the computer program.