Fire monitoring apparatus and computer readable medium recorded with fire monitoring program

• US 5,777,548 A
• Filed: 07/14/1997
• Issued: 07/07/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 12/12/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Hirota, Kanji, Murakami, Yoshishige, Kanzaki, Yoshiharu
• Primary Examiner(s): Hofsass, Jeffery A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Pope, Daryl C.
• Application Number:
  US08/891,899
• Time in Patent Office: 358 Days
• Field of Search: 340/506, 340/511, 340/517, 340/521, 340/524, 340/578, 340/600, 250/554, 250/339.04, 250/339.15
• US Class Current: 340/506
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 17/12 Actuation by presence of radiation or particles, e.g. of infrared radiation or of ions

Abstract

A monitoring target plane is photographed with infrared-rays by each infrared-ray camera. A converter converts format of image data from each infrared-ray camera from analog format into digital format. A control unit, when detecting an abnormal area consisting of pixels having a density value over a fixed value in the image data, calculates an azimuth and an angle of elevation toward the sun from an abnormal location on the monitoring target plane that corresponds to that abnormal area, and judges that a fire occurs if an azimuth toward the abnormal location from the infrared-ray camera photographing the image data including the abnormal area is not coincident with the calculated azimuth toward the sun, or if an angle of depression toward the abnormal location from this infrared-ray camera is not coincident with the calculated angle of elevation toward the sun.

Claims

1. A fire monitoring apparatus comprising:

an infrared-ray photographing device for photographing a monitoring target plane with infrared-rays;

detecting means for detecting an abnormal area exhibiting a temperature over a fixed temperature in an infrared-ray image photographed by said infrared-ray photographing device;

calculating means for calculating an azimuth and an angle of elevation toward the sun from an abnormal location on the monitoring target plane which corresponds to the abnormal area;

comparing means for comparing an azimuth toward the abnormal location from said infrared-ray photographing device with an azimuth toward the sun from the abnormal location, and for comparing an angle of depression toward the abnormal location from said infrared-ray photographing device with the angle of elevation toward the sun from the abnormal location; and

judging means for judging that fire occurs if any one of these comparisons does not result in coincident.

2. A fire monitoring apparatus comprising:

a plurality of infrared-ray photographing devices arranged so that each area within a monitoring target plane is photographed with infrared-rays by at least two infrared-ray devices in different directions;

detecting means for detecting an abnormal area exhibiting a temperature over a fixed temperature in infrared-ray images photographed by each of said infrared-ray photographing devices;

calculating means for calculating an azimuth and an angle of elevation toward the sun from an abnormal location on the monitoring target plane which corresponds to the abnormal area; and

comparing means for comparing an azimuth toward the abnormal location from said infrared-ray photographing device that photographs an infrared-ray image containing the abnormal area with an azimuth toward the sun from the abnormal location, and for comparing an angle of depression toward the abnormal location from said infrared-ray photographing device with the angle of elevation toward the sun from the abnormal location; and

judging means for judging that fire occurs if any one of these comparisons does not result in coincident.

3. A fire monitoring apparatus comprising:

a plurality of fixed infrared-ray photographing devices for respectively photographing any one of partial areas on a monitoring target plane with infrared-rays;

a confirmation infrared-ray photographing device capable of photographing all areas on the monitoring target plane with infrared-rays by rotating a photographic optical axis thereof;

rotating means for rotating the photographic optical axis of said confirmation infrared-ray photographing device;

detecting means for detecting an abnormal area exhibiting a temperature over a fixed temperature in infrared-ray images photographed by said fixed infrared-ray photographing devices and an infrared-ray image photographed by said confirmation infrared-ray photographing device;

calculating means for calculating an azimuth and an angle of elevation toward the sun from an abnormal location on the monitoring target plane which corresponds to the abnormal area detected in the infrared-ray image photographed by any of said fixed infrared-ray photographing devices; and

comparing means for comparing an azimuth toward the abnormal location from said fixed infrared-ray photographing device with an azimuth toward the sun from the abnormal location, and for comparing an angle of depression toward the abnormal location from said fixed infrared-ray photographing device with the angle of elevation toward the sun from the abnormal location; and

control means for judging, if any one of these comparisons does not result in coincident, that fire occurs, or for instructing, if both of these comparison result in coincident, said rotating means to rotate said photographic optical axis of said confirmation infrared-ray photographing device so that an image field of said confirmation infrared-ray photographing device includes the abnormal location, and thereafter judging that the fire occurs in case an abnormal area corresponding to the abnormal location is contained in the infrared-ray image photographed by said confirmation infrared-ray photographing device.

4. A fire monitoring apparatus comprising:

an infrared-ray photographing device for photographing a monitoring target plane with infrared-rays;

detecting means for detecting an abnormal area exhibiting a temperature over a fixed temperature in an infrared-ray image photographed by said infrared-ray photographing device;

storing means for storing segmenting data for segmenting the monitoring target plane into small regions and univocally allocating numerals to the respective small regions, and a sun reflection table in which the numerals are made corresponding to a date and a time zone when an azimuth toward each small region from said infrared-ray photographing device is coincident with an azimuth toward the sun from the same small region and an angle of depression toward the same small region from said infrared-ray photographing device is coincident with an angle of elevation toward the sun from the small region for every small region; and

controlling means for obtaining the numeral allocated to the small region which includes an abnormal location, corresponding to the abnormal area, on the monitoring target plane on the basis of the segmenting data, reading the date and the time zone made corresponding to that numeral from the sun reflection table, and judging that fire occurs if a data and a time when the infrared-ray image is photographed are not included in the date and the time zone read from the sun reflection table.

5. A fire monitoring apparatus comprising:

a plurality of fixed infrared-ray photographing devices for respectively photographing any one of partial areas on a monitoring target plane with infrared-rays;

a confirmation infrared-ray photographing device capable of photographing all areas on the monitoring target plane with infrared-rays by rotating a photographic optical axis thereof;

rotating means for rotating the photographic optical axis of said confirmation infrared-ray photographing device;

detecting means for detecting an abnormal area exhibiting a temperature over a fixed temperature in infrared-ray images photographed by said respective fixed infrared-ray photographing devices and an infrared-ray image photographed by said confirmation infrared-ray photographing device;

storing means for storing segmenting data for segmenting the monitoring target plane into small regions and univocally allocating numerals to the respective small regions, and a sun reflection table in which the numerals are made corresponding to a date and a time zone when an azimuth toward each small region from a fixed infrared-ray photographing device is coincident with an azimuth toward the sun from the same small region and an angle of depression toward the same small region from the same fixed infrared-ray photographing device is coincident with an angle of elevation toward the sun from the same small region for every small region; and

controlling means for specifying the numeral allocated to the small region which includes an abnormal location on the monitoring target plane that corresponds to the abnormal area detected in the infrared-ray image photographed by any one of said fixed infrared-ray photographing devices on the basis-of the segmenting data, reading a date and a time zone made corresponding to the specified numeral from the sun reflection table, judging that fire occurs if a date and a time when those infrared-ray image is photographed are not included in the date and the time zone read from the sun reflection table, instructing said rotating means to rotate the photographic optical axis of said confirmation infrared-ray photographing device so that the small region is included in an image field of said confirmation infrared-ray photographing device if the date and the time when the infrared-ray image is photographed are included in the date and the time zone read from the sun reflection table, and judging that fire occurs if an abnormal area corresponding to the abnormal location is contained in the infrared-ray image photographed by said confirmation infrared-ray photographing device.

6. A computer readable medium recorded with a program of instructing a computer connected to an infrared-ray photographing device for photographing a monitoring target plane with infrared-rays, to execute processes of:

detecting an abnormal area exhibiting a temperature over a fixed temperature in an infrared-ray image photographed by said infrared-ray photographing device;

calculating an azimuth and an angle of elevation toward the sun from an abnormal location on the monitoring target plane which corresponds to the abnormal area;

comparing an azimuth toward the abnormal location from said infrared-ray photographing device with an azimuth toward the sun from the abnormal location;

comparing an angle of depression toward the abnormal location from said infrared-ray photographing device with the angle of elevation toward the sun from the abnormal location; and

judging that fire occurs if any one of the comparisons does not result in coincident.

7. A computer readable medium recorded with a program of instructing a computer connected to a plurality of infrared-ray photographing devices arranged so that each area within a monitoring target plane is photographed with infrared-rays by at least infrared-ray photographing devices in different directions, to execute processes of:

detecting an abnormal area exhibiting a temperature over a fixed temperature in infrared-ray images photographed by said infrared-ray photographing devices;

calculating an azimuth and an angle of elevation toward the sun from an abnormal location on the monitoring target plane which corresponds to the abnormal area; and

comparing an azimuth toward the abnormal location from said infrared-ray photographing device photographing infrared-ray image containing the abnormal area with an azimuth toward the sun from the abnormal location;

comparing an angle of depression toward the abnormal location from said infrared-ray photographing device with the angle of elevation toward the sun from the abnormal location; and

judging that fire occurs if any one of the comparisons does not result in coincident.

8. A computer readable medium recorded with a program of instructing a computer connected to a plurality of fixed infrared-ray photographing devices for respectively photographing any one of partial areas on a monitoring target plane with infrared-rays, a confirmation infrared-ray photographing device capable of photographing the entire areas on the monitoring target plane with the infrared-rays by rotating a photographic optical axis thereof, and a rotating device for rotating the photographic optical axis of said confirmation infrared-ray photographing device, to execute processes of:

detecting an abnormal area exhibiting a temperature over a fixed temperature in infrared-ray images photographed by said fixed type infrared-ray photographing devices and an infrared-ray image photographed by said confirmation infrared-ray photographing device;

calculating an azimuth and an angle of elevation toward the sun from an abnormal location on the monitoring target plane which corresponds to the abnormal area detected in the infrared-ray image photographed by any of said fixed infrared-ray photographing devices;

comparing an azimuth toward the abnormal location from said fixed infrared-ray photographing device with an azimuth toward the sun from the abnormal location;

comparing an angle of depression toward the abnormal location from said fixed infrared-ray photographing device with the angle of elevation toward the sun from the abnormal location;

judging that fire occurs if any one of the comparisons does not result in coincident;

instructing said rotating device to rotate said photographic optical axis of said confirmation infrared-ray photographing device so that an image field of said confirmation infrared-ray photographing device includes the abnormal location, if both of those comparison is coincident, and thereafter judging that fire occurs in case an abnormal area corresponding to the abnormal location is contained in the infrared-ray image photographed by said confirmation infrared-ray photographing device.

9. A computer readable medium recorded with a program of instructing a computer connected to an infrared-ray photographing devices for photographing a monitoring target plane, and comprising a storage device which stores segmenting data for segmenting the monitoring target plane into small regions and for univocally allocating numerals to the respective small regions and a sun reflection table in which the numerals are made corresponding to a date and a time zone when an azimuth toward each small region from said infrared-ray photographing devices is coincident with an azimuth toward the sun from this small region and an angle of depression toward the same small region from said infrared-ray photographing device is coincident with an angle of elevation toward the sun from the small region for every small region, to execute processes of:

detecting an abnormal area exhibiting a temperature over a fixed temperature in an infrared-ray image photographed by said infrared-ray photographing device;

specifying the numeral allocated to a small region which includes an abnormal location on the monitoring target plane that corresponds to the abnormal area on the basis of the segmenting data;

reading a date and a time zone made corresponding to the specified numeral from the sun reflection table; and

judging that fire occurs if the date and the time when the infrared-ray image is photographed are not included in the date and the time zone read from the sun reflection table.

10. A computer readable medium recorded with a program of instructing a computer connected to a plurality of fixed infrared-ray photographing devices for respectively photographing any one of partial areas on a monitoring target plane with infrared-rays, a confirmation infrared-ray photographing device capable of photographing the entire areas on the monitoring target plane with the infrared-rays by rotating a photographic optical axis thereof, and a rotating device for rotating the photographic optical axis of said confirmation infrared-ray photographing device, and comprising a storage device which stores segmenting data for segmenting the monitoring target plane into small regions and for univocally allocating numerals to the respective small regions and a sun reflection table in which the numerals are made corresponding to a date and a time zone when an azimuth toward each small region from a fixed infrared-ray photographing devices is coincident with an azimuth toward the sun from the same small region and an angle of depression toward the same small region from the same fixed infrared-ray photographing device is coincident with an angle of elevation toward the sun from the same small region for every small region, to execute processes of:

detecting an abnormal area exhibiting a temperature over a fixed temperature in infrared-ray images photographed by said respective fixed infrared-ray photographing devices and an infrared-ray image photographed by said confirmation infrared-ray photographing device;

specifying the numeral allocated to a small region which includes an abnormal location on the monitoring target plane that corresponds to the abnormal area detected in the infrared-ray image photographed by any one of said fixed infrared-ray photographing device on the basis of the segmenting data;

reading a date and a time zone made corresponding to the specified numeral from the sun reflection table;

judging that fire occurs if the date and the time when the infrared-ray images are photographed are not included in the date and the time zone read from the sun reflection table;

instructing, if the date and the time when the infrared-ray images are photographed are included in the date and the time zone read from the sun reflection table, said rotating device so that the small region is embraced into an image field of said confirmation infrared-ray photographing device, and judging that fire occurs if an abnormal area corresponding to the abnormal location is contained in the infrared-ray image photographed by said confirmation infrared-ray photographing device.