Communication method and apparatus, server and client on network, and program codes realizing communication thereof

• US 8,015,242 B2
• Filed: 07/07/2006
• Issued: 09/06/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/05/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Ohi, Hirokazu, Okuno, Yasuhiro, Yamakawa, Tadashi, Sato, Mamoru, Suzuki, Yasutomo
• Primary Examiner(s): Shin; Kyung-Hye
• Application Number:
  US11/481,805
• Publication Number:
  US 20060253552A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,887 Days
• Field of Search: 709/203, 709/217, 709/219, 710/62, 358/450, 348/345
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/025 for remote control or remote monitoring of applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/39 involving multiple description coding [MDC], i.e. with separate layers being structured as independently decodable descriptions of input picture data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/86 involving reduction of coding artifacts, e.g. of blockiness
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/236 Assembling of a multiplex stream, e.g. transport stream, by combining a video stream with other content or additional data, e.g. inserting a URL [Uniform Resource Locator] into a video stream, multiplexing software data into a video stream; Remultiplexing of multiplex streams; Insertion of stuffing bits into the multiplex stream, e.g. to obtain a constant bit-rate; Assembling of a packetised elementary stream multiplexing of data packets for data networks, e.g. RTP/UDP H04L65/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/434 Disassembling of a multiplex stream, e.g. demultiplexing audio and video streams, extraction of additional data from a video stream; Remultiplexing of multiplex streams; Extraction or processing of SI; Disassembling of packetised elementary stream demultiplexing of data packets for data networks, e.g. RTP/UDP H04L65/00
• 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 7/0122 the input and the output signals having different aspect ratios

Abstract

An end user is provided with an environment to easily remote-control a video camera via a general network such as the Internet. For this purpose, on a client side, the content of camera control is described in file-transfer protocol description, and the description is transferred to a camera server on the Internet via a browser. The camera server interprets the description, controls a camera in accordance with the designated content, to perform image sensing, and returns the obtained video image as the content of a file to the client. The client performs various controls while observing the video image. When a desired angle has been found, the client instructs to register the angle in a bookmark, then angle information displayed at that time is registered. Thereafter, when the user of the client can see the video image obtained on the same image-sensing conditions by merely select-designating the angle information registered in the bookmark.

Claims

1. A server controlling a camera in accordance with a request from a remote client and transmitting an image obtained by the camera to the remote client, comprising:

an acquisition unit for acquiring information indicating a service allowable range of a control parameter of a zoom ratio of the camera;

a reception unit for receiving a control parameter of the zoom ratio from said client;

a storing unit for storing the image acquired by controlling the camera in accordance with an alternative control parameter within the service allowable range as an image file, if the received control parameter of the zoom ratio is not within the service allowable range of the camera, and for storing the image acquired by controlling the camera in accordance with the received control parameter of the zoom ratio as an image file, if the received control parameter is within the service allowable range of the camera;

a generation unit for generating, if the received control parameter is not within the service allowable range of the camera, an HTML document including link information of the image file of the image acquired by controlling the camera within the service allowable range in accordance with the alternative control parameter of the zoom ratio and stored by the storing unit, where the HTML document further includes a predetermined text data, and generating, if the received control parameter is within the service allowable range of the camera, an HTML document including link information of the image file of the image acquired by controlling the camera in accordance with the received control parameter of the zoom ratio and stored by the storing unit, where the HTML document excludes the predetermined text data; and

a transfer unit for transferring the HTML document generated by said generation unit to said client and for transferring the stored image file, in response to a request from the client, corresponding to the link information included in the transferred HTML document so that if the control parameter is not within the service allowable range of the camera, said client can display the image acquired by controlling the camera within the service allowable range in accordance with the control parameter of the zoom ratio and the predetermined text data or, if the control parameter is within the service allowable range of the camera, said client can display the image acquired by controlling the camera in accordance with the control parameter of the zoom ratio as a response of the control parameter.

2. The server according to claim 1, wherein, in case the received control parameter is not within the service allowable range, said generation unit generates the HTML document which includes text data indicating that the received control parameter is not within the service allowable range.

3. The server according to claim 1, wherein, in case the received control parameter is not within the service allowable range, said generation unit generates the HTML document which includes text data indicating that the control parameter from said client is changed to be within the service allowable range.

4. The server according to claim 1, wherein, said client displays an input frame image including the control parameter to be received by said server, wherein said generation unit generates the HTML document to be used for the client to display a camera information frame together with the input frame image.

5. The server according to claim 1, wherein in case the received control parameter is not within the service allowable range, said generation unit generates the HTML document including link information of the image file corresponding to the image acquired by controlling the camera in accordance with a control parameter changed to be within the service allowable range.

6. A control method for a server controlling a camera which performs information service in accordance with a request from a remote client and transmitting an image obtained by the camera to the remote client, comprising:

acquiring information indicating a service allowable range of a control parameter of a zoom ratio of the camera;

receiving a control parameter of the zoom ratio from said client;

storing the image acquired by controlling the camera in accordance with an alternative control parameter within the service allowable range as an image file, if the received control parameter of the zoom ratio is not within the service allowable range of the camera, and storing the image acquired by controlling the camera in accordance with the received control parameter of the zoom ratio as an image file, if the received control parameter is within the service allowable range of the camera;

generating, if the received control parameter is not within the service allowable range of the camera, an HTML document including link information of the image file of the image acquired by controlling the camera within the service allowable range in accordance with the alternative control parameter of the zoom ratio and stored by said storing step, where the HTML document further includes a predetermined text data, and generating, if the received control parameter is within the service allowable range of the camera, an HTML document including link information of the image file of the image acquired by controlling the camera in accordance with the received control parameter of the zoom ratio and stored by said stored step, where the HTML document excludes the predetermined text data;

transferring the HTML document generated by said generation step to said client; and

transferring the stored image file, in response to a request from the client, corresponding to the link information included in the transferred HTML document so that, if the control parameter is not within the service allowable range of the camera, said client can display the image acquired by controlling the camera within the service allowable range in accordance with the control parameter of the zoom ratio and the predetermined text data or, if the control parameter is within the service allowable range of the camera, said client can display the image acquired by controlling the camera in accordance with the control parameter of the zoom ratio as a response of the control parameter.

7. The control method according to claim 6, wherein in case the received control parameter is not within the service allowable range, said generation step generates the HTML document including link information of the image file corresponding to the image acquired by controlling the camera in accordance with a control parameter changed to be within the service allowable range.

8. A non-transitory storage medium containing program codes to be executed so as to function as a server controlling a camera which performs information service in accordance with a request from a remote client, transmitting an image obtained by the camera to the remote client comprising:

acquisition process procedure codes for acquiring information indicating a service allowable range of a control parameter of a zoom ratio of the camera;

reception process procedure codes for receiving a control parameter of the zoom ratio from said client;

storing process procedure for storing the image acquired by controlling the camera in accordance with an alternative control parameter within the service allowable range as an image file, if the received control parameter of the zoom ratio is not within the service allowable range of the camera, and for storing the image acquired by controlling the camera in accordance with the received control parameter of the zoom ratio as an image file, if the received control parameter is within the service allowable range of the camera;

generation process procedure codes for generating, if the received control parameter is not within the service allowable range of the camera, an HTML document including link information of the image file of the image acquired by controlling the camera within the service allowable range in accordance with the alternative control parameter of the zoom ratio and stored by said storing process procedure, where the HTML document further includes a predetermined text data, and generating, if the received control parameter is within the service allowable range of the camera, an HTML document including link information of the image file of the image acquired by controlling the camera in accordance with the received control parameter of the zoom ratio and stored by said storing process procedure, where the HTML document excludes the predetermined text data;

first transfer process procedure codes for transferring the HTML document generated by said generation process procedure codes to said client; and

second transfer process procedure codes for transferring the stored image file, in response to a request from the client, corresponding to the link information included in the transferred HTML document so that, if the control parameter is not within the service allowable range of the camera, said client can display the image acquired by controlling the camera within the service allowable range in accordance with the control parameter of the zoom ratio and the predetermined text data or, if the control parameter is within the service allowable range of the camera, said client can display the image acquired by controlling the camera in accordance with the control parameter of the zoom ratio as a response of the control parameter.

9. The storage medium according to claim 8, wherein in case the received control parameter is not within the service allowable range, said generation process procedure codes generates the HTML document including link information of the image file corresponding to the image acquired by controlling the camera in accordance with a control parameter changed to be within the service allowable range.