Automobile web cam and communications system incorporating a network of automobile web cams
First Claim
1. A communications system, comprising:
- a plurality of vehicles;
a plurality of web cameras, each of said cameras being disposed in one of said vehicles and being active when the vehicle is running;
means for transmitting information from said vehicles via a wireless network, said transmitted information including video information from said web cameras;
a server for receiving the video information and displaying a plurality of images; and
further comprising means for turning said web camera off when said vehicle is within a predetermined distance of a location designated by the vehicle'"'"'s owner.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A communications system incorporating a plurality of vehicle mounted web cams that collect video information and transmit the video information together with other local information via a wireless network to a server. The video streams from the web cams and associated information are available to users on a internet web page. Each camera has a specific identifier to permit users to access the video of specific individual cameras. Optimization software permits users to take virtual trips along predetermined routes. The system also permits sequential access to multiple video feeds from desired locations. Multiple alternative one way and two way video communication methods taking advantage of the network of mobile web cams are described.
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Citations
9 Claims
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1. A communications system, comprising:
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a plurality of vehicles; a plurality of web cameras, each of said cameras being disposed in one of said vehicles and being active when the vehicle is running; means for transmitting information from said vehicles via a wireless network, said transmitted information including video information from said web cameras; a server for receiving the video information and displaying a plurality of images; and further comprising means for turning said web camera off when said vehicle is within a predetermined distance of a location designated by the vehicle'"'"'s owner. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3)
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4. A communications system, comprising:
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a plurality of vehicles; a plurality of web cameras, each of said cameras being disposed in one of said vehicles and being active when the vehicle is running; means for transmitting information from said vehicles via a wireless network, said transmitted information including video information from said web cameras and an identifier for each of said web cams and wherein said transmitted information includes an identifier for each of said vehicle web cams; means for determining said vehicles'"'"' locations and wherein said transmitted information includes information on said vehicles'"'"' locations; a server for receiving the video information and providing a plurality of images for viewing by a plurality of communication system users wherein said server is operable to display the location and identifier for each web cam; and means for turning said web camera off when said vehicle is within a predetermined distance of a location designated by the vehicle'"'"'s owner.
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5. A method for collecting, organizing, and displaying video information from a plurality of sources, comprising the steps of:
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providing a plurality of web cams, each of said web cams being disposed in a vehicle and being operable only when said vehicle is operating and being operable to communicate video information; transmitting said video information from each of said web cams, via a wireless network, to a server; collecting and organizing the transmitted video information; collecting further information specific to said vehicle and said vehicle web cam, said further information comprising;
vehicle location, vehicle speed, and camera orientation;transmitting said further information to said server; and displaying the collected and organized video information together with said further information on a web page. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7, 8, 9)
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Specification