Infrared camera with image processing modes for maritime applications

• US 8,817,106 B2
• Filed: 11/28/2007
• Issued: 08/26/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/28/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Teledyne FLIR LLC (Teledyne Technologies Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: FLIR Systems, Inc. (Teledyne Technologies Incorporated)
• Inventors: Richardson, Patrick B., Frank, Jeffrey D., Richards, Austin A., Hgasten, Nicholas, Woolaway, James T.
• Primary Examiner(s): BAROT, BHARAT
• Application Number:
  US11/946,798
• Publication Number:
  US 20130208125A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,463 Days
• Field of Search: 348151-155, 348/164, 348/E5.024, 348/E5.09, 250/330, 250/332
• US Class Current: 348/164
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/667 Camera operation mode switching, e.g. between still and video, sport and normal or high- and low-resolution modes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/33 Transforming infrared radiation cameras or camera modules for generating image signals from infrared radiation H04N23/20; circuitry of SSIS for transforming infrared radiation into image signals H04N25/20

Abstract

Systems and methods disclosed herein provide an image capture component adapted to capture an infrared image, a control component adapted to provide a plurality of selectable processing modes to a user, receive a user input corresponding to a user selected processing mode, generate a control signal indicative of the user selected processing mode and transmit the generated control signal. The user selected processing modes, for example, may be directed to maritime applications, such as night docking, man overboard, night cruising, day cruising, hazy conditions, and/or shoreline modes. The systems and methods further provide a processing component adapted to receive the generated control signal from the control component, process the captured infrared image according to the user selected processing mode, and generate a processed infrared image, and a display component adapted to display the processed infrared image.

Claims

1. An infrared camera system comprising:

an infrared image sensor configured to capture an infrared image;

a controller configured to receive a user input corresponding to a user selected infrared image processing mode selected from a plurality of selectable infrared image processing modes, and generate a control signal indicative of the user selected processing mode, wherein the plurality of selectable infrared image processing modes includes a maritime night cruising mode, a maritime day cruising mode, and a maritime man overboard mode; and

an image processor configured to receive the generated control signal from the controller and process the captured infrared image by using histogram equalization and/or specific filtering techniques according to the user selected infrared image processing mode responsive to the generated control signal to generate a processed infrared image.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of selectable infrared image processing modes includes a maritime night docking mode that causes the image processor to histogram equalize and scale the captured infrared image to generate the processed infrared image.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the maritime man overboard mode causes the processing component to apply a high pass filter to the captured infrared image to generate the processed infrared image.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the maritime night cruising mode causes the processing component to extract a detailed part and a background part from the captured infrared image, separately scale the detailed part, separately histogram equalize and scale the background part, and add the detailed part to the background part to generate the processed infrared image.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the maritime day cruising mode causes the processing component to extract a detailed part and a background part from the captured infrared image, separately scale the detailed part, separately histogram equalize and scale the background part, and add the detailed part to the background part to generate the processed infrared image.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of selectable infrared image processing modes includes a maritime hazy conditions mode that causes the processing component to apply a non-linear low pass filter on the captured infrared image, and then histogram equalize and scale the filtered image to generate the processed infrared image.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of selectable infrared image processing modes includes a maritime shoreline mode that causes the processing component to apply a Huff or Hough transform operation to the captured infrared image to generate the processed infrared image.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the display component is configured to display the processed infrared image in a black hot palette or white hot palette, and wherein the system further comprises a display configured to display the processed infrared image.

9. The system of claim 1, further comprising a night display mode, wherein the display component is configured to display the processed infrared image in a red color palette or a green color palette.

10. The system of claim 1, further comprising a memory component configured to store at least one of the captured infrared image and the processed infrared image, and wherein the plurality of selectable infrared image processing modes includes a maritime night docking mode, the maritime man overboard mode, the maritime night cruising mode, the maritime day cruising mode, a maritime hazy conditions mode, and a maritime shoreline mode.

11. The system of claim 1, further comprising a sensing component configured to provide environmental information to the processing component.

12. A method for processing an infrared image, the method comprising:

capturing the infrared image;

receiving a user input corresponding to a user selected infrared image processing mode selected from a plurality of selected infrared image processing modes, wherein the plurality of selectable infrared image processing modes includes a maritime docking mode, a maritime man overboard mode, and a maritime night cruising mode;

processing the captured infrared image according to the user selected infrared image processing mode by using an image processing operation, which uses histogram equalization and/or specific filtering techniques, that is specific to the user selected infrared image processing mode to generate a processed image; and

displaying the processed infrared image.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein processing the captured infrared image according to the maritime night docking mode includes histogram equalizing and scaling the captured infrared image to generate the processed infrared image.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein processing the captured infrared image according to the maritime man overboard mode includes applying a high pass filter to the captured infrared image to generate the processed infrared image.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein processing the captured infrared image according to the maritime night cruising mode includes extracting a detailed part and a background part from the captured infrared image, separately scaling the detailed part, separately histogram equalizing and scaling the background part, and adding the detailed part to the background part to generate the processed infrared image.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein the plurality of selectable infrared image processing modes includes a maritime day cruising mode, and wherein processing the captured infrared image according to the maritime day cruising mode includes extracting a detailed part and a background part from the captured infrared image, separately scaling the detailed part, separately histogram equalizing and scaling the background part, and adding the detailed part to the background part to generate the processed infrared image.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein the plurality of selectable infrared image processing modes includes a maritime hazy conditions mode, and wherein processing the captured infrared image includes applying a non-linear low pass filter on the captured infrared image, and then histogram equalizing and scaling the filtered image to generate the processed infrared image.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein the plurality of selectable infrared image processing modes includes a shoreline mode, and wherein processing the captured infrared image according to the shoreline mode includes applying at least a Huff or Hough transform operation on the captured infrared image to generate the processed infrared image.

19. The method of claim 12, wherein the processed infrared image is displayed in a black hot palette, a white hot palette, or a red color palette.

26. The method of claim 12, wherein the user selected infrared image processing mode comprises the maritime man overboard mode and wherein the method further comprises moving an infrared capturing component so that a horizon is at an upper part of a field of view of the infrared capturing component.

20. A non-transitory computer-readable medium on which is stored instructions for execution by a processor for performing a method, the instructions comprising instructions for:

capturing an infrared image;

receiving a user input corresponding to a user selected infrared image processing mode, wherein the plurality of selectable processing modes includes a maritime night docking mode, a maritime night cruising mode, and a maritime day cruising mode; and

processing the captured infrared image according to the user selected infrared image processing mode by using an image processing operation, which uses histogram equalization and/or specific filtering techniques, that is specific to the user selected infrared image processing mode to generate a processed infrared image.

21. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 20, wherein the plurality of selectable infrared image processing modes includes the maritime night docking mode, and wherein processing the captured infrared image includes histogram equalizing and scaling the captured infrared image to generate the processed infrared image, and wherein the instructions further comprise displaying the processed infrared image.

22. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 20, wherein the plurality of selectable infrared image processing modes includes a maritime man overboard mode, and wherein processing the captured infrared image includes applying a high pass filter to the captured infrared image to generate the processed infrared image;

and wherein the plurality of selectable processing modes includes the maritime night docking mode, the maritime man overboard mode, the maritime night cruising mode, the maritime day cruising mode, a maritime hazy conditions mode, and a maritime shoreline mode.

23. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 20, wherein the plurality of selectable infrared image processing modes includes the maritime night cruising mode, and wherein processing the captured infrared image includes extracting a detailed part and a background part from the captured infrared image, separately scaling the detailed part, separately histogram equalizing and scaling the background part, and adding the detailed part to the background part to generate the processed infrared image.

24. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 20, wherein the plurality of selectable infrared image processing modes includes the maritime day cruising mode, and wherein processing the captured infrared image includes extracting a detailed part and a background part from the captured infrared image, separately scaling the detailed part, separately histogram equalizing and scaling the background part, and adding the detailed part to the background part to generate the processed infrared image.

25. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 20, wherein the plurality of selectable infrared image processing modes includes a maritime hazy conditions mode, and wherein processing the captured infrared image includes applying a non-linear low pass filter on the captured infrared image, and then histogram equalizing and scaling the filtered image to generate the processed infrared image.