Video system and method of operating a video system
First Claim
1. A video imaging system, the system comprising:
- a master video camera for producing video images of a moving object of interest;
a plurality of additional video cameras each positioned at a different location surrounding the object of interest for producing additional video images of the object of interest from different spatial perspectives;
a control system for controlling said additional video cameras in response to the master video camera to follow movement of the object of interest, wherein said control system includes a means for controlling the focal length of each additional camera such that the size of the moving object of interest is generally equal in each of the master and additional cameras;
a recording system for recording the video images produced by the master camera and the additional cameras; and
a user interface for selecting particular ones of the video images for display, wherein said user interface includes a single control device which is adapted to select successive video images from a plurality of additional cameras, each successive one of said plurality of additional cameras being adjacent to a preceding camera, in order to effectuate a partial rotation around the object of interest in the display by moving through said plurality of adjacent additional camera images, such that the size of the object of interest remains generally equal throughout the rotation through successive adjacent additional camera images.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A video imaging system includes a master video camera for producing video images of a moving object of interest, a plurality of additional video cameras each positioned at a different location for producing additional video images of the object of interest from different spatial perspectives, and a control system for controlling the additional video cameras to track the object of interest imaged by the master video camera. The system generates video images using a method comprising the steps of producing a master video image of a moving object of interest, producing additional video images of the object of interest from different spatial perspectives, and controlling size of the object of interest in the additional video images in response to the size of the object of interest in the master video image. The invention further encompasses a method of presenting a video image comprising the steps of producing a plurality of video images of an object of interest from a plurality of spatial perspectives, displaying one of said video images for a period of time, selecting a frame in the displayed video image, and switching the displayed video image among a plurality of corresponding frames of said plurality of video images to display the object of interest from multiple spatial perspectives, giving the illusion of a single camera moving around the frozen object(s). This invention further encompasses the recording of point sound source by placing microphones at the cameras such that the microphones receive sound waves from the direction of the field of view of the cameras, and processing audio signals produced by these microphones to produce an audio output signal representative of sound being produced at a particular location in the area occupied by an event being recorded.
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Citations
15 Claims
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1. A video imaging system, the system comprising:
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a master video camera for producing video images of a moving object of interest; a plurality of additional video cameras each positioned at a different location surrounding the object of interest for producing additional video images of the object of interest from different spatial perspectives; a control system for controlling said additional video cameras in response to the master video camera to follow movement of the object of interest, wherein said control system includes a means for controlling the focal length of each additional camera such that the size of the moving object of interest is generally equal in each of the master and additional cameras; a recording system for recording the video images produced by the master camera and the additional cameras; and a user interface for selecting particular ones of the video images for display, wherein said user interface includes a single control device which is adapted to select successive video images from a plurality of additional cameras, each successive one of said plurality of additional cameras being adjacent to a preceding camera, in order to effectuate a partial rotation around the object of interest in the display by moving through said plurality of adjacent additional camera images, such that the size of the object of interest remains generally equal throughout the rotation through successive adjacent additional camera images. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A method of generating a video image, said method comprising the steps of:
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producing a master video image of a moving object of interest; producing additional video images of the object of interest from different spatial perspectives; and controlling characteristics of said additional video images in response to the master video image to track the object of interest wherein the object of interest is maintained at a generally equivalent size in each of said additional video images by controlling a focal depth of a camera associated with each said additional video images, further wherein a user interface is used to select between the master video image and a plurality of successive adjacent additional user images in order to effectuate a partial rotation around the object of interest by moving through the images from the plurality of successive adjacent additional user images. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12)
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13. A method of generating a television image, said method comprising the steps of:
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producing a plurality of video images of an object of interest from a plurality of spatial perspectives; displaying one of said video images for a period of time; selecting a frame in the displayed video image; and switching the displayed video image among a plurality of corresponding frames of said plurality of video images to display the object of interest from multiple spatial perspectives, wherein the object of interest is maintained at a generally equivalent size in each of said plurality of video images by controlling a focal depth of a camera associated with each of said plurality of video images, further wherein a user interface is used to select between a master video image and a plurality of successive adjacent additional user images in order to effectuate a partial rotation around the object of interest by moving through the images from the plurality of successive adjacent additional user images. - View Dependent Claims (14)
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15. A method of generating a television image, said method comprising the steps of:
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producing a plurality of video images of an object of interest from a plurality of spatial perspectives; displaying one of said video images for a period of time; and switching the displayed video image among said plurality of video images to display the object of interest from multiple spatial perspectives, wherein the object of interest is maintained at a generally equivalent size in each of said plurality of video images by controlling a focal depth of a camera associated with each of said plurality of video images, further wherein a user interface is used to select between a master video image and a plurality of successive adjacent additional user images in order to effectuate a partial rotation around the object of interest by moving through the images from the plurality of successive adjacent additional user images.
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Specification