User-settable features of an intelligent video information management system
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A method of analyzing a sequence of video information frames to detect changes in said video information frames, comprising the steps of:
- displaying in an image plane an image of an object represented by said video information frames;
manipulating a graphic image element to select a region of the image plane corresponding to the object to designate the object for surveillance;
selecting portions of said designated object; and
sequentially examining portions of said video information frames corresponding to said selected portions of said designated object to determine whether said designated object remains in a predetermined position in said video information frames.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A digital recording device records and displays plural streams of video information. Portions of an image plane are assigned among image streams each generated by a respective video camera. A mouse is used to drag a camera icon into a region corresponding to a portion of the image plane to indicate assignment of the portion of the image plane to the stream of images generated by a corresponding camera. Other operating modes of the recording device are selectable by the user.
80 Citations
65 Claims
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1. A method of analyzing a sequence of video information frames to detect changes in said video information frames, comprising the steps of:
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displaying in an image plane an image of an object represented by said video information frames; manipulating a graphic image element to select a region of the image plane corresponding to the object to designate the object for surveillance; selecting portions of said designated object; and sequentially examining portions of said video information frames corresponding to said selected portions of said designated object to determine whether said designated object remains in a predetermined position in said video information frames. - View Dependent Claims (2)
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3. A video data storage apparatus, comprising:
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means for receiving video data which represents an image in an image plane; discard means for selecting a portion of the image plane as to which data storage is not required; and storage means, responsive to said discard means, for storing such portions of said received video data as do not correspond to said selected portion of said image plane; wherein such portions of said received video data as correspond to said selected portion of said image plane are not stored in said storage means. - View Dependent Claims (4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A method of storing video data, comprising the steps of:
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receiving video data which represents an image in an image plane; selecting a portion of the image plane as to which data storage is not required; and storing on a recording medium only such portions of the received video data as do not correspond to said selected portion of said image plane. - View Dependent Claims (9)
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10. A video signal processing apparatus, comprising:
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means for receiving a video signal which represents an image in an image plane; selection means for selecting a portion of the image plane for contrast enhancement; and enhancement means, connected to said means for receiving, and responsive to said selection means, for expanding a dynamic range of portions of said received video signal which correspond to said selected portion of the image plane, and for outputting a selectively enhanced video signal. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A video information storage apparatus, comprising:
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video information source means for generating a dynamic video signal formed of a sequence of video signal frames, each of said frames representing a respective image in an image plane, said dynamic video signal having a time resolution corresponding to a frame rate at which successive frames of said sequence are produced, said dynamic video signal also having a space resolution corresponding to a density at which pixels of said signal are formed in said image plane; signal processing means for receiving said dynamic video signal generated by said video information source means and for selectively varying at least one of the time resolution and the space resolution of the received dynamic video signal; user adjustable means for entering a control signal for controlling whether and to what degree said signal processing means varies said at least one of the time resolution and the space resolution of the received dynamic video signal, said signal processing means outputting a processed dynamic video signal having a time resolution and a space resolution at least one of which is determined in accordance with said control signal; and storage means for storing said processed dynamic video signal. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. A method of performing data compression with respect to plural sequences of image data frames which each represent a dynamic sequence of video images, each sequence generated by a respective video camera, the method comprising the steps of:
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encoding every nth frame of each said sequence of image data frames in accordance with an intra-frame compression algorithm in which each of said every nth frame is encoded without reference to any other image data frame, n being an integer greater than 1; encoding every frame other than said intraframe-encoded frames in accordance with a difference encoding compression algorithm which includes forming difference data by reference to at least one data frame in the respective sequence which precedes the frame which is being difference-encoded; receiving a camera-selection signal input by a user; receiving a compression parameter setting signal input by the user; and varying a value of n, camera-by-camera, in accordance with the received camera-selection and compression parameter setting signals.
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24. A method of performing data compression with respect to plural sequences of image data frames which each represent a dynamic sequence of video images, each sequence generated by a respective video camera, the method comprising the steps of:
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receiving a first compression parameter setting signal input by a user with respect to a first one of said sequences of image data frames; selecting a first frame interval with respect to said first sequence of image data frames in accordance with the received first compression parameter setting signal; compression-encoding in accordance with a first compression algorithm ones of said image data frames occurring at said selected first frame interval in said first sequence; compression-encoding in accordance with a second compression algorithm all other of said image data frames of said first sequence, said second compression algorithm being different from said first compression algorithm; receiving a second compression parameter setting signal input by the user with respect to a second one of said sequences of image data frames, said second compression parameter setting signal being different from said first compression parameter setting signal; selecting a second frame interval with respect to said second sequence of image data frames in accordance with the received second compression parameter setting signal, said second frame interval being different from said first frame interval; compression-encoding in accordance with the first compression algorithm ones of said image data frames occurring at said second selected frame interval in said second sequence; and compression-encoding in accordance with the second compression algorithm all other of said image data frames of said second sequence. - View Dependent Claims (25)
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26. A method of assigning regions of an image plane among streams of dynamic images each generated by a respective one of a plurality of video cameras, comprising the steps of:
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displaying in a first portion of a display screen a plurality of icons each representing a respective one of said plurality of video cameras; displaying in a second portion of said display screen a representation of said image plane including regions of said second portion of said display screen corresponding to said regions of said image plane; and moving at least one of said icons from said first portion of said display screen to said second portion of said display screen, to position each said moved icon in a respective one of said regions of said second portion to indicate that the image stream generated by the video camera represented by said moved icon is to be displayed in the image plane region corresponding to said respective one of said regions of said second portion. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33)
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34. Video display apparatus, comprising:
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a plurality of video cameras each for generating a respective stream of dynamic images; display means including a display screen for displaying at least selected ones of said streams of dynamic images; control means for controlling said display means to display in a first portion of said display screen a plurality of icons each representing a respective one of said plurality of video cameras and to display in a second portion of said display screen a representation of an image plane including regions of said second portion corresponding to respective regions of said image plane; and instruction means for inputting first instructions from a user of the apparatus to said control means to cause said control means to move at least one of said icons from said first portion of said display screen to said second portion of said display screen, to position each said moved icon in a respective one of said regions of said second portion to indicate that the image stream generated by the video camera represented by said moved icon is to be displayed in the image plane region corresponding to said respective one of said regions of said second portion, said instruction means also for inputting a second instruction from said user to said control means to cause said display means to display said image plane in which respective image streams generated by selected ones of said video cameras are displayed in respective regions of said image plane in accordance with said image plane region assignment indicated by said first instructions. - View Dependent Claims (35, 36, 37)
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38. Apparatus for storing video information, comprising:
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a plurality of video cameras; recording means for recording on a recording medium video information generated by said plurality of video cameras, said recording means being selectively operable in accordance with a plurality of recording modes with respect to each one of said plurality of video cameras; storage means for storing scheduling information, said scheduling information including a plurality of scheduling information portions each corresponding to a respective 24-hour period, each of said scheduling information portions including a plurality of subportions each corresponding to a respective one of said plurality of video cameras, each of said subportions defining times during the respective 24-hour period for which ones of said recording modes have been selected for the respective one of said plurality of video cameras; and control means for controlling said recording means in accordance with the scheduling information stored in said storage means. - View Dependent Claims (39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45)
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46. A method of scheduling recording modes with respect to a plurality of video cameras included in a closed-circuit video surveillance system, comprising the steps of:
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storing scheduling information, said scheduling information including a plurality of scheduling information portions each corresponding to a respective 24-hour period, each of said scheduling information portions including a plurality of subportions each corresponding to a respective one of said plurality of video cameras, each of said subportions defining times during the respective 24-hour period for which ones of said recording modes have been selected for the respective one of said plurality of video cameras; and controlling, in accordance with the stored scheduling information, recording of images generated by said plurality of video cameras. - View Dependent Claims (47, 48, 49, 50)
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51. A video information storage apparatus, comprising:
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a plurality of video cameras each for generating a dynamic video signal formed of a sequence of video signal fields, each of said fields representing a respective image; recording means for recording each of said sequences of video signal fields at regular intervals at a field storage rate which is variable from sequence to sequence, the field storage rate defining a duration of the regular intervals at which the respective sequence of video signal fields is recorded; and user actuatable means for selectively inputting to the recording means selection signals for selecting with respect to each of said sequences of video signal fields the field storage rate for the respective sequence. - View Dependent Claims (52, 53, 54)
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55. A method of storing video information, comprising the steps of:
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simultaneously generating a plurality of dynamic video signals each formed of a sequence of video signal fields, each of said fields representing a respective image; recording each of said sequences of video signal fields at regular intervals at a field storage rate which is variable from sequence to sequence, the field storage rate defining a duration of the regular intervals at which the respective sequence of video signal fields is recorded; and selectively manipulating a user input device to generate selection signals for selecting with respect to each of said sequences of video signal fields the field storage rate for the respective sequence. - View Dependent Claims (56, 57, 58)
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59. Apparatus for analyzing video information, comprising:
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a video camera; analysis means for analyzing video information generated by said video camera in accordance with a moving image content analysis algorithm, said analysis means being selectively operable in accordance with a plurality of operating modes; storage means for storing scheduling information, said scheduling information including a plurality of scheduling information portions each corresponding to a respective different future period of time, and each indicating an operating mode of said analysis means that has been selected for said period of time; and control means for controlling said analysis means so as to operate in accordance with the selected operating modes during the periods of time indicated by the scheduling information stored in said storage means. - View Dependent Claims (60, 61, 62)
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63. A method of scheduling operating modes of a video information analysis device, comprising the steps of:
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storing scheduling information, said scheduling information including a plurality of scheduling information portions each corresponding to a respective different future period of time, and each indicating an operating mode of said analysis device that has been selected for said period of time; and controlling said analysis device so as to operate in accordance with the selected operating modes during the periods of time indicated by the stored scheduling information. - View Dependent Claims (64)
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65. A video information storage apparatus, comprising:
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video information source means for generating a dynamic video signal formed of a sequence of video signal fields, each of said fields representing a respective image in an image plane, said dynamic video signal having a time resolution corresponding to a field rate at which successive fields of said sequence are produced, said dynamic video signal also having a space resolution corresponding to a density at which pixels of said signal are formed in said image plane; signal processing means for receiving said dynamic video signal generated by said video information source means and for selectively varying at least one of the time resolution and the space resolution of the received dynamic video signal; user adjustable means for entering a control signal for controlling whether and to what degree said signal processing means varies said at least one of the time resolution and the space resolution of the received dynamic video signal, said signal processing means outputting a processed dynamic video signal having a time resolution and a space resolution at least one of which is determined in accordance with said control signal; and storage means for storing said processed dynamic video signal.
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Specification