Passenger surveillance

• US 20120007981A1
• Filed: 07/09/2010
• Published: 01/12/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 07/09/2010
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Nu Flow Technologies (2000) Incorporated (Nu Flow)
• Original Assignee: Nu Flow Technologies (2000) Incorporated (Nu Flow)
• Inventors: Guerrera, Ernest L.
• Application Number:
  US12/803,937
• Publication Number:
  US 20120007981A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/143
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 45/0053 using visual equipment, e.g. cameras
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 45/0059 by communicating emergency situations to ground control or between crew members
• 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

Methods and apparatus, including computer program products, for passenger surveillance. A system for implementing passenger surveillance includes a control unit, a stationary interface, a portable interface, an Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS) unit and one or more cameras. A method for enabling passenger surveillance includes mounting one or more cameras to an interior position of a housing, the one or more cameras linked to a control unit and controlled by a user interface device, the housing including one or more animate or inanimate objects, receiving images of the one or more animate or inanimate objects from the one of more cameras at the user interface device, locking on to an animate or inanimate object of interest, and tracking the animate or inanimate object of interest by controlling the one or more cameras.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a control unit having at least one of a stationary interface or portable interface;

one or more cameras linked to the control unit; and

an Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS) unit linked to the control unit.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the control unit is a dual small form factor personal computer (PC).

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the control unit is a rack mountable computing unit configured as an active/passive high availability Linux cluster.

4. The system of claim 2 wherein the control unit further comprises

a solid state disk (SSD) network accessible storage (NAS) unit with disaster proof enclosure for image storage;

a gigabit Ethernet switch with IEEE 802.11 secure wireless Ethernet; and

a Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS) unit.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the at least one of the stationary interface or the portable interface enable a user to control the control unit, view video images from the one or more cameras, and communicate with a ground station using the ACARS unit.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the at least one of the stationary interface or the portable interface includes an authentication system.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein the stationary interface is connected to the control unit with CAT-6 Ethernet cable.

8. The system of claim 1 wherein the portable interface is one of a laptop personal computer (PC) or hand-held device.

9. The system of claim 1 wherein the portable interface is linked to the control unit using IEEE 802.11n secure wireless Ethernet.

11. The system of claim 1 wherein the one or more cameras are linked to the control unit 12 using shielded/fireproof CAT-6 Ethernet cable and powered by Power over Ethernet (PoE).

10. The system of claim 10 wherein the one or more cameras are multiple Internet Protocol (IP) network cameras with remotely controllable motorized pan/tilt/zoom head, mounted on an anterior ceiling of a cabin area.

12. A method comprising:

mounting one or more cameras to an interior position of a housing, the one or more cameras linked to a control unit and controlled by a user interface device, the housing including one or more animate or inanimate objects;

receiving images of the one or more animate or inanimate objects from the one of more cameras at the user interface device;

locking on to an animate or inanimate object of interest; and

tracking the animate or inanimate object of interest by controlling the one or more cameras.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the one or more cameras are multiple Internet Protocol (IP) network cameras with remotely controllable motorized pan/tilt/zoom head

14. The method of claim 12 wherein control unit is a dual small form factor personal computer (PC) or a rack mountable computing unit configured as an active/passive high availability Linux cluster.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein control unit further comprises:

a solid state disk (SSD) network accessible storage (NAS) unit with disaster proof enclosure for image storage;

a gigabit Ethernet switch with IEEE 802.11 secure wireless Ethernet; and

a Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS) unit.

16. The method of claim 12 wherein the user interface device enables communication with a ground station using an Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS) unit linked to the control unit.

17. The method of claim 12 wherein the received images of the one or more animate or inanimate objects are stored in an image repository.

18. The method of claim 12 wherein the control unit includes facial recognition software.

19. The method of claim 12 wherein the user interface device is selected from the group of a stationary interface and a hand-held portable interface.