Method and Device for Tele-Viewing

• US 20120105631A1
• Filed: 10/12/2009
• Published: 05/03/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/13/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Withings S.A.
• Original Assignee: Withings S.A.
• Inventors: Hutchings, Cédric
• Granted Patent: US 9,019,371 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/143
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19682 Graphic User Interface [GUI] presenting system data to the user, e.g. information on a screen helping a user interacting with an alarm system
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19684 Portable terminal, e.g. mobile phone, used for viewing video remotely
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19689 Remote control of cameras, e.g. remote orientation or image zooming control for a PTZ camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/62 Control of parameters via user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/631 Graphical user interfaces [GUI] specially adapted for controlling image capture or setting capture parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/66 Remote control of cameras or camera parts, e.g. by remote control devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/661 Transmitting camera control signals through networks, e.g. control via the Internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/185 from a mobile camera, e.g. for remote control

Abstract

A method of tele-viewing in which a virtual image of a place to be viewed, obtained on the basis of old images of this place, is presented on the screen (9a) of a control device, the desired viewpoint is obtained by navigating around this virtual image, the desired viewpoint is confirmed, the field of vision of a picture-taking device is moved so that it is located according to the desired viewpoint and it is made to take at least one current image of the place to be viewed, and then this current image is transmitted to the control device and is displayed on its screen.

Claims

1. A tele-viewing method comprising the following steps:

(a) a connection step during which a control device provided with a screen is made to remotely communicate with a motor-driven camera appliance with mobile field of view arranged in a place to be viewed, said camera appliance being suitable for seeing the place to be viewed from a plurality of viewpoints,

(b) a control step during which the field of view movements of said camera appliance are controlled to obtain a desired viewpoint over the place to be viewed out of said plurality of viewpoints,

(c) a display step during which the place to be viewed is remotely displayed from the desired viewpoint, on the screen of the control device,

the control step (b) comprising the following substeps;

(b1) a virtual image of the place to be viewed is presented on the screen of the control device seen from a first viewpoint out of said plurality of viewpoints, said virtual image being obtained from virtual image data previously stored in the control device on the basis of old images of said place to be viewed,

(b2) navigation in said virtual image is obtained by modifying the viewpoint of the virtual image out of said plurality of viewpoints, until the desired viewpoint is obtained,

(b3) the desired viewpoint is confirmed,

(b4) a part of the camera device is moved to place the field of view of the camera device according to the desired viewpoint and it is made to take at least one current image of the place to be viewed from said desired viewpoint,

(b5) said current image is transmitted to the control device and it is displayed on the screen of the control device.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, in which, during the substep (b4), intermediate images of the place to be viewed from intermediate viewpoints between an initial viewpoint and the desired viewpoint are stored while the field of view of the camera appliance is moved to the desired viewpoint.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2, in which said intermediate images are used to update said virtual image data in the control device, said virtual image data being subsequently used to create locally, on the control device, a virtual image of the place to be viewed.

4. A tele-viewing device for implementing a method as claimed in claim 1, comprising:

a motor-driven camera appliance with mobile field of view designed to be arranged in a place to be viewed, said camera appliance being suitable for seeing the place to be viewed from a plurality of viewpoints,

a control device provided with a screen,

link means suitable for having said camera appliance communicate remotely with said one control device,

the control device being provided with a user interface enabling a user to control movements of the field of view of said camera appliance to obtain a desired viewpoint over the place to be viewed out of said plurality of viewpoints, and the screen of the control device being suitable for remotely displaying the place to be viewed from the desired viewpoint,

the control device being designed to present on the screen a virtual image of the place to be viewed seen from a first viewpoint out of said plurality of viewpoints, said virtual image being obtained from virtual image data previously stored in the control device from old images of said place to be viewed,

said user interface being designed to enable a user to navigate in said virtual image by modifying the viewpoint of the virtual image out of said plurality of viewpoints until the desired viewpoint is obtained, and to confirm the desired viewpoint,

said control device being designed to transmit to the camera appliance a command to make a part of the camera device move to place the field of view of the camera device according to the desired viewpoint and to make it take at least one current image of the place to be viewed from said desired viewpoint,

and said control device being designed to receive said current image via said link means and to display it on the screen.

5. The device as claimed in claim 4, in which the camera appliance is a motor-driven digital camera.

6. The device as claimed in claim 4, in which the camera appliance operates on a battery.

7. The device as claimed in claim 4, in which the camera appliance is designed to take intermediate images of the place to be viewed from intermediate viewpoints between an initial viewpoint and the desired viewpoint while the field of view of the camera appliance is moved to the desired viewpoint.

8. The device as claimed in claim 7, in which the camera appliance is designed to transmit said intermediate images to the control device and said control device is designed to use said intermediate images to update said virtual image data.