Video surveillance system employing video primitives

• US 9,892,606 B2
• Filed: 06/28/2005
• Issued: 02/13/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 11/15/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Motorola Solutions, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Avigilon Fortress Corporation (Motorola Solutions, Inc.)
• Inventors: Venetianer, Peter L., Lipton, Alan J., Chosak, Andrew J., Frazier, Matthew F., Haering, Niels, Myers, Gary W., Yin, Weihong, Zhang, Zhong, Cutting, Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): VO, TUNG T
• Application Number:
  US11/167,218
• Publication Number:
  US 20070013776A1
• Time in Patent Office: 4,613 Days
• Field of Search: 348158-160, 348 1402, 348155, 348143, 348148, 348150, 348149, 348166, 348169, 348170, 382103, 382115, 37524002, 37524008
• 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: G08B 13/19602 Image analysis to detect motion of the intruder, e.g. by frame subtraction
• 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 13/1961 Movement detection not involving frame subtraction, e.g. motion detection on the basis of luminance changes in the image
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19615 wherein said pattern is defined by the user
• 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 13/1968 Interfaces for setting up or customising the system
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/181 for receiving images from a plurality of remote sources
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/188 Capturing isolated or intermittent images triggered by the occurrence of a predetermined event, e.g. an object reaching a predetermined position signal generation from motion picture films H04N5/253

Abstract

A video surveillance system extracts video primitives and extracts event occurrences from the video primitives using event discriminators. The system can undertake a response, such as an alarm, based on extracted event occurrences.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

first, providing a video processing apparatus comprising;

an event detection system, including

an input to receive input video information, and

an event detection device including hardware, the event detection device configured to analyze the input video information and to detect an event based on one or more rules applied to the analyzed video information; and

an application programming interface framework coupled to the event detection device to permit a separately generated program to interact with the event detection device to define the one or more rules for the event detection device; and

then, separately providing a user interface configured to permit access by a user to rule language or primitive definitions to create new rules for the event detection device, and configured to provide to the event detection device via the application programming interface the new rules as the one or more rules, wherein the user interface is configured to provide new rules that do not previously exits within the event detection system and thereby provide new functionality to the event detection system.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the event detection device comprises:

a video content analysis device including hardware configured to analyze the input video formation to derive a plurality of attributes of an object in the input video information; and

an event inference device including hardware coupled to said video content analysis device and configured to detect an event based on one or more rules applied to the plurality of derived attributes, the event not being one of the derived attributes.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

wherein the step of separately providing the user interface comprises providing a user interface configured to communicate the one or more rules to the event detection device via the application programming interface over a network.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the step of separately providing the user interface comprises providing a user interface configured to access a software development kit to access fully formed rules.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the step of separately providing the user interface comprises providing a user interface configured to access a software development kit to access rule language.

6. The method of claim 3, wherein the step of separately providing the user interface comprises providing a user interface configured to access a software development kit to access primitive definitions.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of separately providing the user interface comprises providing a user interface configured to permit a user to define a new type of video tripwire.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of separately providing the user interface comprises providing a user interface configured to permit a user to define a new area of interest.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of separately providing the user interface comprises providing a user interface configured to permit a user to define an object classification.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of separately providing the user interface comprises providing a user interface configured to permit a user to create a rule element.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the video processing apparatus is an element of a video camera.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the video processing apparatus is housed in a housing separate from the user interface.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

creating the one or more rules at a location remote from the video processing apparatus.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

transmitting the one or more rules to the event detection device via the application programming interface over a network.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the video processing apparatus is configured to receive all rules for the event detection device only via the application programming interface.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the event detection device generates an alert upon detecting an event based on the one or more rules, and the video processing apparatus is configured to output all alerts only via the application programming interface.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the application programming interface is coupled to the video input to provide the input video information to the event detection device.

18. A video device comprising:

an event detection system, including

an input to receive input video information, and

an event detection device including hardware, the event detection device configured to analyze the input video information, to detect an event based on one or more rules applied to the analyzed video information; and

an application programming interface framework coupled to the event detection device to permit a separately generated program to interact with the event detection device to define the one or more rules for the event detection device, the application programming interface configured to provide communication with the event detection device to receive the one or more rules for the event detection device,

wherein the application programming interface is configured to communicate with a separately later provided user interface configured to permit access by a user to rule language or primitive definitions to create new rules for the event detection device,

wherein the application programming interface framework is configured to receive and to provide to the event detection device the new rules as the one or more rules, wherein the application programming interface is configured to provide new rules that do not previously exist within the event detection system and thereby provide new functionality to the event detection system.

19. The video device of claim 18, further comprising a housing containing the event detection system and the application programming interface, wherein the video device is configured to receive any new user rule from a source exterior to the housing.

20. The video device of claim 18, wherein the event detection device comprises:

a video content analysis device including hardware configured to analyze the input video information to derive a plurality of attributes of an object in the input video information; and

an event inference device including hardware coupled to said video content analysis device and configured to detect an event based on one or more rules applied to the plurality of derived attributes, the event not being one of the derived attributes.

21. The video device of claim 18, further comprising:

a network interface configured to receive the one or more rules over a network and to communicate the received one or more rules to the event detection device via the application programming interface over a network.

22. The video device of claim 21, further comprising the user interface, the user interface being in communication with the event detection system via the network.

23. The video device of claim 22, further comprising a software development kit accessible by the user interface to access the fully formed rules.

24. The video device of claim 22, further comprising a software development kit accessible by the user interface to access the rule language.

25. The video device of claim 22, further comprising a software development kit accessible by the user interface to access the primitive definitions.

26. The video device of claim 22, wherein the user interface is configured to permit a user to define a new type of video tripwire.

27. The video device of claim 22, wherein the user interface is configured to permit a user to define a new area of interest.

28. The video device of claim 22, wherein the user interface is configured to permit a user to define an object classification.

29. The video device of claim 22, wherein the user interface is configured to permit a user to create a rule element.

30. The video device of claim 18, further comprising:

the user interface, the user interface being in communication with the event detection system via the network; and

a housing that houses the event detection system and application programming interface, the housing being separate from the user interface.

31. The video device of claim 18, further comprising:

the user interface, the user interface being in communication with the event detection system via the network; and

a housing remote from the user interface that houses the event detection system and application programming interface.

32. The video device of claim 18, wherein the video device is a video camera and the event detection system and application programming interface are implemented on the video camera.

33. The video device of claim 18, wherein the video device is configured to receive all rules for the event detection device only via the application programming interface.

34. The video device of claim 18, wherein the video device is configured to output all alerts only via the application programming interface.