Display image formation device and display image formation method

• US 10,051,244 B2
• Filed: 04/24/2013
• Issued: 08/14/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 05/08/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Fujimatsu, Takeshi, Miwa, Michio
• Primary Examiner(s): Czekaj, Dave
• Assistant Examiner(s): Slater, Alison
• Application Number:
  US14/395,910
• Publication Number:
  US 20150109452A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,938 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 3/047 Fisheye or wide-angle transformations
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 3/4038 Image mosaicing, e.g. composing plane images from plane sub-images
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19641 Multiple cameras having overlapping views on a single scene
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19682 Graphic User Interface [GUI] presenting system data to the user, e.g. information on a screen helping a user interacting with an alarm system
• 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 7/181 for receiving images from a plurality of remote sources

Abstract

A display image formation device enables, in an intuitive manner, designation of a location which the user wishes to see when multiple panoramic images obtained by multiple panoramic cameras are present, and enables display of the image for a designated site in a suitable state. One panoramic camera is selected from multiple panoramic cameras on the basis of the positional relationship between a designated position on a planar map and the multiple panoramic cameras. An extracted image region, which is extracted from the image photographed by the selected panoramic camera, is determined. A display image is generated such that the extracted image is arranged on the planar map.

Claims

1. A display image formation apparatus comprising:

a memory that stores instructions; and

a processor that, when executing the instructions stored in the memory, performs operations comprising;

selecting an omni-directional camera from a plurality of omni-directional cameras based on a positional relationship between a designated position on a plan map and positions of the plurality of omni-directional cameras;

determining an enlargement amount of an image region, as a parameter, to extract the image region from an omni-directional image captured by the selected omni-directional camera for display, according to a distance, in a plane of the omni-directional image, from a center of the omni-directional image captured by the selected omni-directional camera to the designated position in the omni-directional image;

determining the image region having the determined enlargement amount in the omni-directional image captured by the selected omni-directional camera using the parameter;

extracting the determined image region from the omni-directional image;

enlarging the extracted image region having the determined enlargement amount;

generating a display image including the enlarged extracted image region overlapping the plan map; and

outputting the generated display image to a display,

wherein the image region is determined such that, as a size of the image region extracted from the omni-directional image captured by the selected omni-directional camera increases, the distance from the center of the captured omni-directional image, in the plane of the captured omni-directional image, becomes shorter and the enlargement amount decreases, and the extracted image region is processed by pixel interpolation to enlarge the extracted image region.

2. The display image formation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the enlargement amount of the extracted image region increases, as the distance increases.

3. The display image formation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, while the designated position is being dragged, the selected omni-directional camera is maintained and an other omni-directional camera is not selected.

4. The display image formation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, when the selected omni-directional camera is changed, an angle of view of the image region is increased to a wide angle before and after the change of the selected omni-directional camera.

5. The display image formation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the omni-directional camera is selected based on the designated position designated by a user and a sight line direction designated by the user.

6. The display image formation apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the display image further includes a camera icon overlapping the plan map, the camera icon being provided for designating the sight line direction.

7. The display image formation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display image further includes a field of view corresponding to the extracted image region, the field of view overlapping the plan map.

8. The display image formation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display image further includes a time designation image for designating a time corresponding to the extracted image region, the time designation image and the extracted image being displayed together.

11. The display image formation apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising the display that displays the generated display image.

9. A display image formation method comprising:

selecting an omni-directional camera from a plurality of omni-directional cameras based on a positional relationship between a designated position on a plan map and positions of the plurality of omni-directional cameras;

determining an enlargement amount of an image region, as a parameter, to extract the image region from an omni-directional image captured by the selected omni-directional camera for display, according to a distance, in a plane of the omni-directional image, from a center of the omni-directional image captured by the selected omni-directional camera to the designated position in the omni-directional image;

determining the image region having the determined enlargement amount in the omni-directional image captured by the selected omni-directional camera using the parameter;

extracting the determined image region from the omni-directional image;

enlarging the extracted image region having the determined enlargement amount;

generating a display image including the enlarged extracted image region overlapping the plan map; and

outputting the generated display image to a display,

wherein the image region is determined such that, as a size of the image region extracted from the omni-directional image captured by the selected omni-directional camera increases, the distance from the center of the captured omni-directional image, in the plane of the captured omni-directional image, becomes shorter and the enlargement amount decreases, and the extracted image region is processed by pixel interpolation to enlarge the extracted image region.

10. The display image formation apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the extracted determined image region is enlarged such that a size of the enlarged extracted determined image region included in the display image remains constant regardless of the size of the extracted image region.