Camera control system, camera server, camera client, control method, and storage medium

• US 6,567,121 B1
• Filed: 10/23/1997
• Issued: 05/20/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 10/25/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Kuno, Tomoko
• Primary Examiner(s): MOE, AUNG SOE
• Application Number:
  US08/955,700
• Time in Patent Office: 2,035 Days
• Field of Search: 348/211, 348/213, 348/214, 348/14.1, 348/143, 348/207.1, 348/207.11, 348/211.99, 348/211.1, 348/211.3, 348/211.4, 348/211.5, 348/211.7, 348/211.8, 348/211.12, 348/552
• US Class Current: 348/211.3
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/58 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/631 Graphical user interfaces [GUI] specially adapted for controlling image capture or setting capture parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/661 Transmitting camera control signals through networks, e.g. control via the Internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/695 Control of camera direction for changing a field of view, e.g. pan, tilt or based on tracking of objects
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/77 between a recording apparatus and a television camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/9201 involving the multiplexing of an additional signal and the video signal

Abstract

An arrangement is provided in which previously sensed image information is stored, so that information with an angle desired by the user can be searched for and displayed. Image data sensed by a camera device (100) is captured by an image information capture unit (101) and the angle information of image data captured by the image information capture unit (101) is acquired by an image view point information acquisition unit (102). A header is generated by a header generation unit (103) based on the angle information. A recording information generation unit (104) generates recording information based on the generated header and the captured image data, and stores the generated information in an external storage device (6). Upon reception of an external search instruction, a search unit (105) searches for information matching angle information included in the search condition, and an output unit (106) outputs the found image data.

Claims

1. A camera control system including a camera server which can freely control a camera device, an angle of which can be freely controlled, and a remote client for displaying an image from said camera server,

said remote client comprising:

a search condition transfer module that transfers angle information as search condition instruction information to said camera server during a time another remote client is controlling operation of the camera device; and

a display control module that displays image data transferred from said camera server on predetermined display means, and

said camera server comprising;

a storage module that stores in predetermined storage means a plurality of image data sensed by the camera device and angle information for each of the plurality of image data;

a search module that searches the predetermined storage means in accordance with the angle information in the search condition instruction information when the search condition instruction information is received from said remote client; and

an image data transfer module that transfers the image data found by said search module to said remote client.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein said storage module also stores image sensing date information, and

said search condition transfer module transfers time zone information as a search condition.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein said camera server senses an image within a photographable range by sequentially changing an angle of the camera device when a pre-set time is reached.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein said camera server further comprises:

a live image transfer module that transfers current image data sensed by said camera device during the time the camera device is being operated by another remote client,

wherein said transfer module transfers the searched image data while the live image is transferred by said live image transfer module.

5. A camera server for use with a camera device, an angle of which can be freely controlled, where said camera server transfers an image sensed by the camera device to a remote client in accordance with an instruction from the remote client, said camera server comprising:

a storage module that stores a plurality of image data sensed by the camera device and angle information for each of the plurality of image data;

a search module that searches said storage module in accordance with the angle information in the instruction when the instruction is received from the remote client during a time another remote client is controlling operation of the camera device; and

an image data transfer module that transfers the image data found by said search module to the remote client.

6. The camera server according to claim 5, wherein said storage module stores image data as a part of HTML data.

7. The camera server according to claim 5, wherein said search module includes a search program executed when the instruction is received from a remote client.

8. The camera server according to claim 5, wherein said image data transfer module transfers image data via internet.

9. The camera server according to claim 8, wherein said image data transfer module transfers the image data by HTTP protocol.

10. The camera server according to claim 5, wherein said storage module also stores image sensing date information, and

said search module makes a search using a time zone as a search condition when the instruction includes the time zone information.

11. The camera server according to claim 5, wherein said camera server senses an image within a photographable range by sequentially changing an angle of the camera device when a pre-set time is reached.

12. A camera client connected to a camera server in turn connected to a camera device, an angle of which can be freely controlled, where the camera server stores in predetermined storage means a plurality of image data together with image sensing angle information for each of the plurality of image data, said camera client comprising:

an input module that inputs angle information as search information;

a transfer module that transfers the input search information to the camera server during a time another remote client is controlling operation of the camera device; and

a display module that displays image data stored in the predetermined storage means, and found by and transferred from said camera server.

13. The camera client according to claim 12, wherein said input module inputs the angle information in an address input area of a predetermined browser.

14. The camera client according to claim 12, wherein said camera server also stores image sensing date information in said predetermined storage means in association with the image data, and

said input module inputs image sensing time zone information as a search condition.

15. A method of controlling a camera server for use with a camera device, an angle of which can be freely controlled, and where the camera server transfers an image sensed by the camera device to a remote client in accordance with an instruction from the remote client, the method comprising:

the storage step of storing in predetermined storage means a plurality of image data sensed by the camera device and angle information for each of the plurality of image data;

the search step of searching the storage means in accordance with the angle information in the instruction when the instruction is received from the remote client during a time another remote client is controlling operation of the camera device; and

the image data transfer step of transferring the image data found in the search step to the remote client.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein the storage step includes storing image sensing date information, and

the search step includes making a search using a time zone as a search condition when the time zone information is included in the instruction.

17. The method according to claim 15, further comprising the step of sensing an image within a photographable range by sequentially changing an angle of the camera device when a pre-set time is reached.

18. A method of controlling a camera client connected to a camera server in turn connected to a camera device, an angle of which can be freely controlled, where the camera server stores in predetermined storage means a plurality of image data sensed by the camera device together with image angle information for each of the plurality of image data, the method comprising:

the input step of inputting angle information as search information;

the transfer step of transferring the input search information to the camera server during a time another remote client is controlling operation of the camera device; and

the display step of displaying image data found in the predetermined storage means of the camera server in accordance with said transfer step.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein the camera server also stores image sensing date information in the predetermined storage means in association with the plurality of image data, and

the input step also includes inputting image sensing time zone information as a search condition.

20. A storage medium that stores a program for implementing operation of a camera server connected to a camera device, an angle of which can be freely controlled, where the camera server transfers an image sensed by the camera device to a remote client in accordance with an instruction from the remote client, where the storage medium stores program codes which respectively implement the following steps:

storing in predetermined storage means a plurality of image data sensed by the camera device and angle information for each of the plurality of image data;

searching the predetermined storage means in accordance with the angle information in the instruction when the instruction is received from the remote client during a time another remote client is controlling operation of the camera device; and

transferring the image data found in the search step to the remote client.

21. A storage medium that stores a program for implementing operation of a camera client connected to a camera server in turn connected to a camera device, an angle of which can be freely controlled, where the camera server stores in predetermined storage means a plurality of image data sensed by the camera device together with angle information for each of the plurality of image data, said storage medium storing program codes which respectively implement the following steps:

inputting from the remote client angle information as search information;

transferring the input search information to the camera server during a time another remote client is controlling operation of the camera device; and

displaying image data found and transferred from the camera server in the transfer step.