Video imagery-based sensor

• US 8,334,906 B2
• Filed: 05/04/2007
• Issued: 12/18/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/24/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Motorola Solutions, Inc.
• Original Assignee: ObjectVideo Incorporated (Alarm.com Holdings, Inc.)
• Inventors: Lipton, Alan J., Thompson, Bruce, Clark, John I. W., Yu, Li, Yin, Wei Hong, Titus, Steve, Mistry, Amit, Morris, James, Venetianer, Peter L., Zhang, Zhong
• Primary Examiner(s): VU, NGOC YEN T
• Application Number:
  US11/744,353
• Publication Number:
  US 20070285510A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,055 Days
• Field of Search: 348/169, 348/135, 348/143
• US Class Current: 348/169
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/1961 Movement detection not involving frame subtraction, e.g. motion detection on the basis of luminance changes in the image
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19613 Recognition of a predetermined image pattern or behaviour pattern indicating theft or intrusion
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19652 Systems using zones in a single scene defined for different treatment, e.g. outer zone gives pre-alarm, inner zone gives alarm
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19663 Surveillance related processing done local to the camera
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19686 Interfaces masking personal details for privacy, e.g. blurring faces, vehicle license plates
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19689 Remote control of cameras, e.g. remote orientation or image zooming control for a PTZ camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/00 Cameras or camera modules comprising electronic image sensors; Control thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/18 Closed-circuit television [CCTV] systems, i.e. systems in which the video signal is not broadcast

Abstract

A sensing device includes: a video imager to obtain video of an area; a processing unit to receive and process the video from the video imager to identify one of an event or a datum of interest; and a communication channel to output a non-imagery signal representing the event or datum.

Claims

1. A sensing device, comprising:

a video imager to obtain a video comprising a stream of video images within a field of view of the video imager;

a processing unit having a processor to receive and process the stream of video images of said video from the video imager to count a number of at least one of humans or objects in the field of view of the video imager based solely on the video, wherein said process comprises;

segmenting said at least one of humans or objects represented in at least one of said stream of video images, and tracking a movement of said at least one of humans or objects over said stream of video images; and

a communication channel to output non-imagery signals based on the video and not to output images or video from the video imager, at least one of the non-imagery signals representing the counted number of said at least one of humans or objects in the field of view.

2. The sensing device of claim 1, wherein the processing unit processes the video to count the number of humans in the field of view of the video imager and wherein the at least one of the non-imagery signals represents the counted number of humans in the field of view.

3. The sensing device of claim 1, wherein the sensing device further comprises an output device, wherein the output device is at least one of a liquid crystal display, a light-emitting diode display, or an audio output and wherein the output device does not output video.

4. The sensing device of claim 1, wherein the sensing device further comprises a communication driver to communicate with one or more devices or systems external to the sensing device.

5. The sensing device of claim 4, wherein the communication driver communicates with at least one of a television, a personal computer, a cell phone, a web client, a network storage, or a central monitoring system.

6. The sensing device of claim 4, wherein the communication driver communicates with one or more components of an energy management system, including an air/water heating component, a ventilation component, an air conditioning component, or a window treatment control component.

7. The sensing device of claim 1, wherein the sensing device is a stand-alone device.

8. The sensing device of claim 1, wherein the sensing device is part of a remote monitoring system, a building automation system, an access control system, a business intelligence gathering system, an emergency responder system, or a traffic management system.

9. The sensing device of claim 1, further comprising an optical sensor to provide light level information to the processing unit.

10. The sensing device of claim 1, wherein the video imager comprises at least one of a color imager, a monochrome imager, a low light imager, a day/night infrared (IR) imager, a thermal imager, a thermal IR imager, a carbon-metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) imager, a charge-coupled device (CCD) imager, or special purpose video imager.

11. The sensing device of claim 1, further comprising an illuminator to illuminate the field of view with a range of light wavelengths, and wherein the video imager is sensitive to the range of light wavelengths of the illuminator.

12. The sensing device of claim 1, further comprising at least one physical control to configure and/or calibrate the sensing device.

13. The sensing device of claim 1, wherein the processing unit processes the video to further count the number of at least one of humans or objects entering the field of view and wherein the at least one of the non-imagery signals further represents the counted number of at least one of humans or objects entering the field of view.

14. The sensing device of claim 1, wherein the processing unit processes the video to further count the number of at least one of humans or objects exiting the field of view and wherein the at least one of the non-imagery signals further represents the counted number of at least one of humans or objects exiting the field of view.

15. The sensing device of claim 1, wherein the processing unit processes the video to further count the number of at least one of humans or objects entering and exiting the field of view and wherein the at least one of the non-imagery signals further represents the counted number of at least one of humans or objects entering and exiting the field of view.

16. The sensing device of claim 1, wherein the processing unit receives and processes the video from the video imager to identify an area and count a number of at least one of humans or objects in the area, wherein the area is a subset of the field of view of the video imager;

and

wherein the at least one of the non-imagery signals represents the counted number of at least one of humans or objects in the area.

17. The sensing device of claim 16, wherein the processing unit identifies the area based on movements of a person in the field of view of the video imager and tracking the movements of the person.

18. The sensing device of claim 17, wherein the processing unit identifies the area based on movements of the person walking a perimeter of the area.

19. The sensing device of claim 16, wherein the processing unit identifies the area based on the obtained video.

20. The sensing device of claim 16, wherein the processing unit processes the video to further count the number of at least one of humans or objects entering the area and wherein the at least one of the non-imagery signals further represents the counted number of at least one of humans or objects entering the area.

21. The sensing device of claim 16, wherein the processing unit processes the video to further count the number of at least one of humans or objects exiting the area and wherein the at least one of the non-imagery signals further represents the counted number of at least one of humans or objects exiting the area.

22. The sensing device of claim 16, wherein the processing unit processes the video to further count the number of at least one of humans or objects entering and exiting the area and wherein the at least one of the non-imagery signals further represents the counted number of at least one of humans or objects entering and exiting the area.

23. The sensing device of claim 1, wherein the processing unit receives and processes the video from the video imager to identify an area and count a number of at least one of humans or objects entering or exiting the area, wherein the area is a subset of the field of view of the video imager;

and

wherein the at least one of the non-imagery signals represents the counted number of at least one of humans or objects entering or exiting the area.

24. The sensing device of claim 23, wherein the processing unit processes the video to further count a number of at least one of humans or objects entering the area.

25. The sensing device of claim 23, wherein the processing unit processes the video to further count a number of at least one of humans or objects exiting the area.

26. The sensing device of claim 23, wherein the processing unit identifies the area based on movements of a person in the field of view of the video imager and tracking the movements of the person.

27. The sensing device of claim 26, wherein the movements of the person comprise walking the perimeter of the area.

28. The sensing device of claim 23, wherein the processing unit identifies the area based on the obtained video.

29. The sensing device of claim 1 further comprising:

a user-activated hardware mechanism to initiate a configuration mode for the sensing device.

30. A method of monitoring a scene, comprising:

receiving video data about the scene from a video imager;

activating a learn mode of a processing unit having a processor;

configuring said monitoring by defining an area of interest in the scene with the processing unit based solely on tracking a configuration person or a configuration object in the scene from the video data, while the learn mode is activated;

subsequently counting a number of at least one of humans or objects in relation to the area of interest based solely on the area of interest and the video data by the processing unit, while the learn mode is deactivated; and

outputting non-imagery signals based on the video and not outputting images or video from the video imager, at least one of the non-imagery signals representing the counted number of at least one of humans or objects.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein the number of at least one of humans or objects entering the area of interest are counted.

32. The method of claim 30, wherein the number of at least one of humans or objects exiting the area of interest are counted.

33. The method of claim 30, wherein the number of at least one of humans or objects entering and exiting the area of interest are counted.

34. The method of claim 30, wherein the number of humans in relation to the area of interest are counted.

35. The method of claim 30, wherein outputting the signal comprises outputting the signal to at least one of a remote monitoring system, a building automation system, an access control system, a business intelligence gathering system, an emergency responder system, or a traffic management system.

36. The method of claim 35, wherein outputting the signal comprises outputting the signal to at least one of one or more components of an energy management system, including an air/water heating component, a ventilation component, an air conditioning component, or a window treatment control component.

37. The method of claim 30, wherein outputting a signal comprises outputting the signal to at least one of a local computer, a television, a set top box, a router, a cellular telephone, a remote computer, or a remote monitoring center.

38. A sensing device, comprising:

a video imager to obtain video within a field of view of the video imager;

a processing unit having a processor to;

configure by receiving and processing the video from the video imager to identify a tripwire based solely on tracking a configuration person or a configuration object in the field of view of the video imager, and to define a specified direction of crossing the tripwire based solely on tracking the configuration person or the configuration object in the field of view of the video imager, and

subsequently count a number of at least one of humans or objects crossing the tripwire in the specified direction based solely on the video, the tripwire, and the specified direction of crossing the tripwire; and

a communication channel to output non-imagery signals based on the video and not to output images or video from the video imager, at least one of the non-imagery signals representing the number of tripwire crossings in the specified direction.

39. The sensing device of claim 38, wherein the processing unit identifies the tripwire and defines the specified direction of crossing the tripwire based on tracking movements of the configuration person or the configuration object in the field of view of the video imager and on an orientation of the configuration person or the configuration object in the field of view of the video imager.

40. The sensing device of claim 39, wherein the movements of the configuration person or the configuration object comprise walking along the path of the tripwire.

41. The sensing device of claim 38, wherein the number of humans crossing the tripwire in a specified direction are counted.