MOVING OBJECT DETECTION, TRACKING, AND DISPLAYING SYSTEMS

• US 20110169867A1
• Filed: 10/20/2010
• Published: 07/14/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Innovative Signal Analysis, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Innovative Signal Analysis, Inc.
• Inventors: Gibbs, Daniel P., Erbert, Stephen R., Bailey, Weldon T., Hillebrand, Mark J., Kniffen, Stacy K.
• Granted Patent: US 9,430,923 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/660
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04806 Zoom, i.e. interaction techniques or interactors for controlling the zooming operation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04847 Interaction techniques to control parameter settings, e.g. interaction with sliders or dials
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04855 Interaction with scrollbars
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/10016 Video; Image sequence
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30232 Surveillance
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30241 Trajectory
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/248 involving reference images or patches
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/194 using image scanning and comparing systems

Abstract

Moving object detecting, tracking, and displaying systems are provided. Systems illustratively include a graphical user interface and a processing unit. The processing unit is a functional part of the system that executes computer readable instructions to generate the graphical user interface. The graphical user interface may include an alert and tracking window that has a first dimension that corresponds to a temporal domain and a second dimension that corresponds to a spatial domain. In some embodiments, alert and tracking windows include target tracking markers. Target tracking markers optionally provide information about moving objects such as, but not limited to, information about past locations of moving objects and information about sizes of moving objects. Certain embodiments may also include other features such as zoom windows, playback controls, and graphical imagery added to a display to highlight moving objects.

Claims

1. A moving object tracking system comprising:

a graphical user interface on a display device, the graphical user interface including an alert and tracking window, the alert and tracking window having a first dimension that corresponds to a temporal domain and a second domain corresponding to a spatial domain; and

a processing unit that is a functional part of the system that executes computer readable instructions to generate the graphical user interface.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the alert and tracking window includes a target tracking marker, the target tracking marker providing information about the current location and past locations of a moving object.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the target tracking marker provides information about a speed and a direction of motion of the moving object.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the target tracking marker provides information about a size of the moving object.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the target tracking marker provides information about the size of the moving object by increasing an intensity of a portion of the alert and tracking window.

6. The system of claim 4, wherein the target tracking marker provides information about the size of the moving object by increasing a dimension of the target tracking marker.

7. The system of claim 2, wherein the graphical user interface includes a video window that shows a visual representation of the moving object.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the current and past locations of the moving object within the video window are highlighted utilizing an automated computer algorithm.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the video window and the alert and tracking window are aligned in a vertical direction.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein the video window and the alert and tracking window are aligned in a horizontal direction.

11. The system of claim 7, wherein the graphical user interface includes one or more zoom windows, the one or more zoom windows being generated based at least in part upon a user selection.

12. The system of claim 7, wherein the graphical user interface includes one or more zoom windows, the one or more zoom windows being generated automatically by a software algorithm.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the system obtains information from a non-optical sensor.

14. A method of tracking a moving object, the method comprising:

showing the moving object in a first graphical user interface window;

showing the current location and past locations of the moving object in a second graphical user interface window, the second graphical user interface window being separate from and distinct from the first graphical user interface window.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the first and the second graphical user interfaces are shown on one display device.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the first and the second graphical user interfaces are shown on multiple display devices.

17. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

graphically highlighting the moving object in the first graphical user interface window.

18. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

providing a larger representation of the moving object in a zoom window.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

changing a magnification level of the zoom window.

20. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

changing an area displayed in the zoom window.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein the zoom window and the first graphical user interface window are coded such that an area of the first graphical user interface window that corresponds to the zoom window is identifiable.

22. A system comprising:

a first window that includes a representation of an area, the representation of the area having within it one or more moving objects; and

a second window that includes information about past, current, and estimated future locations of the one or more moving objects.

23. The system of claim 22, wherein the second window has one dimension that corresponds to a spatial dimension of the first window.

24. The system of claim 22, further comprising:

a data storage unit that stores information about the area collected by a sensor; and

playback controls that allow a user to review the stored information.

25. The system of claim 22, further comprising:

an interface that receives information about the area from an external data store; and

playback controls that allow a user to review the received information.

26. The system of claim 22, wherein the first window and the second window are updated at the same rate.

27. The system of claim 22, wherein the first window and the second window are updated at different rates.