Monitor for monitoring a panoramic image

• US 8,044,992 B2
• Filed: 12/10/2004
• Issued: 10/25/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/12/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Mase, Mikiko, Hasegawa, Hiroyuki, Kurebayashi, Masaaki, Hama, Hideki
• Primary Examiner(s): LAM, HUNG H
• Application Number:
  US11/009,233
• Publication Number:
  US 20050157173A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,510 Days
• Field of Search: 348/352, 348/145, 348/208.1, 348/211.8, 348/207.11, 348/333.02
• US Class Current: 348/36
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/62 Control of parameters via user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/631 Graphical user interfaces [GUI] specially adapted for controlling image capture or setting capture parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/635 Region indicators; Field of view indicators
• 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 23/698 for achieving an enlarged field of view, e.g. panoramic image capture
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/18 Closed-circuit television [CCTV] systems, i.e. systems in which the video signal is not broadcast

Abstract

A system and method to monitor a target area of a panoramic images by shooting the target area, sequentially shifting the shooting direction. A unit image of a generated panoramic image and a corresponding unit image of another panoramic image generated before the first panoramic image are compared and the change, if any, in the luminance level is detected. Then, the detected difference of luminance level is compared with a predetermined threshold value and predetermined information is displayed on the display screen with the generated panoramic image. It is possible to define small regions in the area for which a large threshold is predetermined and/or small regions in the area for which no such comparison is made on a unit image basis.

Claims

1. A monitor for monitoring a generated panoramic image, the monitor comprising:

defining means for predefining a plurality of regions with a threshold value greater than a predetermined threshold value,

wherein different threshold values are defined for each of the plurality of regions that constitute the generated panoramic image;

comparing means for sequentially detecting a difference of luminance level between each image region forming the generated panoramic image and a corresponding image region of another generated panoramic image taken prior to a first image along a same shooting direction and comparing the detected difference of luminance level with the predetermined threshold value for each image region, and exempting a plurality of the plurality of regions from comparison according to the defined threshold values to minimize workload and reduce frequency of drawing user'"'"'s attention to apparent differences generated by R, G, B signals that cannot be visually detected;

shifting means for shifting the shooting direction sequentially in a horizontal and vertical direction from a coordinate (1,

     1) to (i, j) to shoot an entire area with a set view angle u to obtain the plurality of regions;

compression means for compressing and coding the image signal;

adding means for adding position information and corresponding meta-data to the image signal; and

display control means for causing predetermined information to be displayed on a display screen along with the generated panoramic image according to the result of the comparison by the comparing means.

2. The monitor according to claim 1, further comprising:

shooting means for shooting a target area and sequentially shifting the shooting direction thereof.

3. The monitor according to claim 1, wherein the comparing means compares the difference of luminance level on the basis of an image compression unit.

4. The monitor according to claim 1, wherein the comparing means compares the difference of luminance level for each primary color signal or for each luminance signal and each color difference signal.

10. The monitor according to claim 1, wherein defining means automatically defines the plurality of regions with a threshold value greater than the predetermined threshold value and the one or more regions exempt from comparison.

11. The monitor according to claim 1, further comprising:

a memory for storing the predefined regions and threshold values thereof.

12. The monitor according to claim 1, wherein the defining means predefines on a unit image basis.

13. The monitor according to claim 1, wherein the defining means predefines on groups of unit images basis.

14. The monitor according to claim 1, wherein the defining means predefines on user selected groups of unit images basis.

15. The monitor according to claim 1, wherein the defining means predefines sizes of an object for which any difference of luminance level can be detected.

5. A method of monitoring a generated panoramic image, the method comprising:

a defining step defining a plurality of regions with a threshold value greater than a predetermined threshold value,

wherein different threshold values are defined for each of the plurality of regions that constitute the generated panoramic image;

a comparing step of sequentially detecting a difference of luminance level between each image region forming the generated panoramic image and a corresponding image region of another generated panoramic image taken prior to a first image along a same shooting direction and comparing the detected difference of luminance level with the predetermined threshold value for each image region, and exempting a plurality of the plurality of regions from comparison according to the defined threshold values to minimize workload and reduce frequency of drawing user'"'"'s attention to apparent differences generated by R, G, B signals that cannot be visually detected;

a shifting step for shifting the shooting direction sequentially in a horizontal and vertical direction from a coordinate (1,

     1) to (i, j) to shoot an entire area with a set view angle u to obtain the plurality of regions;

a compression step for compressing and coding the image signal;

an adding step for adding position information and corresponding meta-data to the image signal; and

a display step of causing predetermined information to be displayed on a display screen along with the generated panoramic image according to the result of the comparison in the comparing step.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the difference of luminance level is compared on the basis of image compression unit in the comparing step.

7. The method according to claim 5, wherein the difference of luminance level is compared for each primary color signal or for each luminance signal and each color difference signal in the comparing step.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable medium for storing a computer program for monitoring a generated panoramic image, the program comprising:

a defining step to define a plurality of regions with a threshold value greater than a predetermined threshold value,

wherein different threshold values are defined for each of the plurality of regions that constitute the generated panoramic image;

a comparing step of sequentially detecting a difference of luminance level between each image region forming the generated panoramic image and a corresponding image region of another generated panoramic image taken prior to a first image along a same shooting direction and comparing the detected difference of luminance level with the predetermined threshold value for each image region, and exempting a plurality of the plurality of regions from comparison according to the defined threshold values to minimize workload and reduce frequency of drawing user'"'"'s attention to apparent differences generated by R, G, B signals that cannot be visually detected;

a shifting step for shifting the shooting direction sequentially in a horizontal and vertical direction from a coordinate (1,

     1) to (i, j) to shoot an entire area with a set view angle u to obtain the plurality of regions;

a compression step for compressing and coding the image signal;

an adding step for adding position information and corresponding meta-data to the image signal; and

a display step of causing predetermined information to be displayed on a display screen along with the generated panoramic image according to the result of the comparison in the comparing step.

9. A non-transitory recording medium storing a computer-readable program for monitoring a generated panoramic image, the program comprising:

a defining step defining a plurality of regions with a threshold value greater than a predetermined threshold value,

wherein different threshold values are defined for each of the plurality of regions that constitute the generated panoramic image;

a comparing step of sequentially detecting a difference of luminance level between each image region forming the generated panoramic image and a corresponding image region of another generated panoramic image taken prior to a first image along a same shooting direction and comparing the detected difference of luminance level with the predetermined threshold value for each image region, and exempting a plurality of the plurality of regions from comparison according to the defined threshold values to minimize workload and reduce frequency of drawing user'"'"'s attention to apparent differences generated by R, G, B signals that cannot be visually detected;

a shifting step for shifting the shooting direction sequentially in a horizontal and vertical direction from a coordinate (1,

     1) to (i, j) to shoot an entire area with a set view angle u to obtain the plurality of regions;

a compression step for compressing and coding the image signal;

an adding step for adding position information and corresponding meta-data to the image signal; and

a display step of causing predetermined information to be displayed on a display screen along with the generated panoramic image according to the result of the comparison in the comparing step.