Surveillance tracking system and related methods

• US 9,760,852 B2
• Filed: 03/25/2014
• Issued: 09/12/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 01/28/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Junaid Hasan
• Original Assignee: Junaid Hasan
• Inventors: Hasan, Junaid
• Primary Examiner(s): HALLENBECK-HUBER, JEREMIAH CHARLES
• Application Number:
  US14/224,329
• Publication Number:
  US 20150213391A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,267 Days
• Field of Search: 348150
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06398 Performance of employee with respect to a job function
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/52 Surveillance or monitoring of activities, e.g. for recognising suspicious objects recognising microscopic objects G06V20/69
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/103 Static body considered as a whole, e.g. static pedestrian or occupant recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19606 Discriminating between target movement or movement in an area of interest and other non-signicative movements, e.g. target movements induced by camera shake or movements of pets, falling leaves, rotating fan
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19613 Recognition of a predetermined image pattern or behaviour pattern indicating theft or intrusion
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/181 for receiving images from a plurality of remote sources

Abstract

Embodiments of the invention may relate to systems and/or methods for using video surveillance systems to monitor spaces where people tend to gather such as retail stores, theaters, stadiums, or other public gathering places. Furthermore, embodiments may be adapted to discern elements of human behavior in a video feed, and use these behaviors to draw quantitative and/or qualitative conclusions from the video data. Typical conclusions may include overall conversion rates for a store, conversion/close rates of individual salespeople, traffic patterns within a space, peak traffic times, and so on.

Claims

1. A system for retail resource management, comprising:

a plurality of electronic video cameras each having an electronic video data output, the plurality of electronic video cameras being adapted for installation in a space to be monitored and configured for monitoring the space;

a central computer adapted to receive the electronic video data outputs of the plurality of video cameras; and

a computer program installable on the central computer and adapted to;

distinguish human subjects from inanimate objects;

distinguish agent human subjects from non-agent human subjects, in the video data output from the plurality of electronic video cameras;

identify interacting non-agent human subjects by correlating the non-agent human subjects'"'"' movements, proximity, length of time that the human subjects spend within a predefined proximity of each other within the monitored space, whether the human subjects make bodily contact with each other, duration of bodily contact between human subjects, parts of the human subjects'"'"' bodies involved in bodily contact, whether the human subjects make eye contact, duration of eye contact; and

associate individual non-agent human subjects, and/or groups of interacting non-agent human subjects, with an agent by correlating, relative to the agent, the non-agent human subjects'"'"' movements, proximity, length of time that the non-agent human subject spends within a predefined proximity of the agent, whether the non-agent human subjects make bodily contact with the agent, duration of bodily contact between the agent and non-agent human subjects, parts of the agent and non-agent human subjects'"'"' bodies involved in bodily contact, whether the agent and non-agent human subjects make eye contact, and duration of eye contact.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the computer program is further adapted to count the number of non-agent human subjects, or correlated groups of non-agent human subjects, who enter, who are present in, and/or who exit the monitored space.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the computer program is further adapted to calculate retail conversion rates based on the number of non-agent human subjects, or correlated groups of non-agent human subjects, visiting the monitored space.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the computer program is further adapted to calculate the close rate of an agent.

5. The system of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of wireless identification devices adapted to be paired with agents of the monitored space, and at least one wireless reader installable in the monitored space and adapted to read identification data contained in the wireless identification devices.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the central computer is further adapted to receive identification device data from the at least one wireless reader and record the identification device data as a function of time.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the at least one wireless reader comprises a plurality of wireless readers installable in the monitored space according to a predetermined spatial pattern, and wherein the central computer is further adapted to receive signals from the plurality of wireless readers to calculate and track the position of agents in the monitored space.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the computer program is further adapted to track the amount of time that an agent spends in areas of the monitored space other than the sales floor.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the computer program is further adapted to track the number of non-agent human subjects, or groups of interacting non-agent human subjects, who leave the monitored space without being associated with an agent.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the computer program further comprises a reporting feature adapted to present data collected by the system in tabular and/or graphical form.