THERMAL IMAGING CAMERA WITH INTERMITTENT IMAGE CAPTURE

• US 20140042319A1
• Filed: 08/10/2012
• Published: 02/13/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/10/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fluke Corporation (Fortive Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Fluke Corporation (Fortive Corp.)
• Inventors: Pickett, James T., Heinke, Thomas
• Granted Patent: US 8,907,282 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 250/330
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/33 Transforming infrared radiation cameras or camera modules for generating image signals from infrared radiation H04N23/20; circuitry of SSIS for transforming infrared radiation into image signals H04N25/20

Abstract

A thermal imaging camera that intermittently captures thermal images of a scene for long term monitoring of the scene. The thermal images may be captured after each interval of a time delay interval and/or upon detection of a threshold change in thermal energy in the scene.

Claims

1. A method of monitoring a temperature of a scene using a thermal imaging camera comprising:

a) inputting an amount of a time delay interval into a delay timer of the camera;

b) capturing an infrared image of the scene, wherein capturing the infrared image triggers the time delay interval to begin;

c) upon expiration of the time delay interval, capturing another infrared image of the scene, wherein capturing another infrared image triggers the time delay to begin again; and

d) repeating step c a plurality of times.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein capturing the infrared image further triggers the camera to enter a sleep mode, and wherein the camera returns to full power upon expiration of the time delay interval.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein when the camera is in the sleep more, power is discontinued to all camera components except the delay timer.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising inputting a duration of monitoring, wherein step c is repeated until expiration of the duration.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising storing the infrared images obtained in steps a and c and combining them to form a stream of images.

6. A method of monitoring a temperature of a scene using a thermal imaging camera comprising:

a) selecting a temperature threshold into the camera;

b) capturing an infrared image of the scene;

c) after capturing the infrared image, detecting a thermal energy of the scene;

d) if the detected thermal energy does not exceed the threshold, continuing to detect the thermal energy of the scene;

e) if the detected thermal energy exceeds the threshold, capturing another infrared image of the scene;

f) after capturing another infrared image of the scene, resuming detecting the thermal energy of the scene; and

g) repeating steps d-f a plurality of times.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising buffering infrared images of the scene via a frame buffer.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein capturing the infrared image of the scene includes capturing at least some of the infrared images from the frame buffer.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the at least some of the infrared images from the frame buffer include infrared images of the scene both before and after the detected thermal energy exceeds the threshold.

10. The method of claim 6, wherein capturing the infrared image of the scene includes capturing multiple frames of infrared images.

11. The method of claim 6, wherein while detecting the thermal energy of the scene in steps c and f, the camera is in a sleep mode.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein when the camera is in sleep mode, a supply of power is discontinued to camera components not being used.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein when the camera is in sleep mode, the supply of power is continued to a system on chip of the camera for detecting the thermal energy of the scene.

14. The method of claim 6, further comprising analyzing whether the detected thermal energy exceeds the threshold, where the analysis is performed by mpeg encoder blocks of a system on chip, where the system on chip includes a processor.

15. The method of claim 6, wherein the threshold comprises a temperature value.

16. The method of claim 6, wherein the threshold comprises an amount of a temperature increase.

17. The method of claim 6, further comprising combining the captured infrared images into a stream of images.

18. A method of monitoring a temperature of a scene using a thermal imaging camera comprising:

a) inputting a temperature threshold into the camera;

b) inputting an amount of a time delay interval into a delay timer of the camera

c) capturing an infrared image of the scene;

d) starting the delay timer, wherein capturing the infrared image triggers the delay timer to start;

e) upon expiration of the time delay interval, detecting a thermal energy of the scene;

f) if the detected thermal energy does not exceed the threshold, restarting the delay timer;

g) if the detected thermal energy exceeds the threshold, capturing another infrared image of the scene, and then restarting the delay timer;

h) repeating steps e-g a plurality of times.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein capturing the infrared image in step c or starting the delay timer in step d triggers the camera to enter a sleep mode and wherein capturing another infrared image in step g or restarting the delay timer in step g also triggers the camera to enter a sleep mode.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein step e further comprises returning full power to the camera upon expiration of the time delay interval and prior to detecting the thermal energy of the scene in step e.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein if the detected thermal energy exceeds the threshold in step d, returning full power to the camera prior to capturing another infrared image of the scene.

22. The method of claim 19, further comprising combining the captured images into a stream of images.