PORTABLE PAN-TILT CAMERA AND LIGHTING UNIT FOR VIDEOIMAGING, VIDEOCONFERENCING, PRODUCTION AND RECORDING

• US 20120013725A1
• Filed: 07/19/2011
• Published: 01/19/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/20/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Simon P. King
• Original Assignee: Simon P. King
• Inventors: King, Simon P.
• Granted Patent: US 8,411,131 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/77
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/361 Image-producing devices, e.g. surgical cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/181 for receiving images from a plurality of remote sources
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/185 from a mobile camera, e.g. for remote control

Abstract

The present invention is a portable camera and lighting unit for standalone use in videography to create a high-resolution well-illuminated video feed from a vast array of camera angles and positions, the illumination source always inherently tracking with the camera. The unit may also be used as a satellite in combination with a primary video conferencing and production station (VVPR) for multi-camera production and teleconferencing capabilities. The portable camera and lighting unit includes a portable base, a mast extending upward from the base, and an articulating boom that is fully-pivotable and extendable. A remote control Pan-Tilt-Zoom camera is mounted at the end of the boom for overhead images of healthcare procedures, and an adjustable beam light source is mounted directly on the camera for lighting. The mast is equipped with a color monitor coupled to the camera for operator previewing at the portable unit, and the remote control camera provides a single video feed that can be teleconferenced, recorded, and even mixed with other cameras when used as a satellite adjunct to the primary VVPR, thereby allow full production capabilities for live interactive broadcasts, all in real time by a single operator from a single point of control. The portable unit is mobile and offers more diverse lighting and camera angles than previously possible.

Claims

1. A mobile lighting unit for producing lighting for a live video feed of a medical procedure, comprising:

a wheeled base;

a cabinet mounted on said base;

a mast extending vertically from said base;

an articulating boom extending from atop said mast;

an adjustable-beam fiber-optic projection lens mounted distally on said boom; and

a fiber optic light-generating supply; and

an optical cable connecting said fiber optic lighting supply to said projection lens;

whereby said mobile lighting unit may be wheeled into a convenient location for illumination.

2. The mobile videoimaging unit according to claim 1, further comprising a remotely-controlled pan-tilt-zoom video camera mounted distally on one end of said boom, and a color video display connected to said video camera and mounted on said mast for displaying an output from the remotely-controlled video camera to an operator.

3. In a mobile lighting unit, a remotely-controlled pan-tilt-zoom video camera having a lens attached to an articulating lens carriage, and a light source attached to said lens carriage proximate said lens for directing a focused beam of light along the same optical path shared by said video camera.

4. The mobile lighting unit according to claim 3, wherein said a remotely-controlled pan-tilt-zoom video camera is mounted distally on an articulating boom, which is in turn mounted on a mast extending from a base.

5. The mobile lighting unit according to claim 3, wherein said base is a multi-legged base having a castor on each leg.

6. A combination videoimaging and lighting unit for producing a video feed, comprising:

a pan-tilt-zoom video camera having a lens supported in an articulating lens carriage for imaging a field of view centered about an optical path, and a body supporting said lens carriage; and

a fiber optic light source attached to the lens carriage of said video camera for directing a beam of light along said optical path.

7. The combination videoimaging and lighting unit for producing a video feed according to claim 6, wherein said fiber optic light source further comprises a projection lens fixedly mounted to said articulating lens carriage and in optical communication through an optical fiber to a remote lamp.

8. The combination videoimaging and lighting unit for producing a video feed according to claim 7, wherein said projection lens is adjustable to illuminate the entire field of view of said video camera.

9. The combination videoimaging and lighting unit for producing a video feed according to claim 7, wherein said remote lamp is a xenon lamp.

10. The combination videoimaging and lighting unit for producing a video feed according to claim 7, wherein said video camera is remotely controlled.

11. The combination videoimaging and lighting unit for producing a video feed according to claim 7, further comprising an articulating boom including at least two fixed segments pivotally attached end-to-end, said video camera being mounted distally at one end of said articulating boom.

12. The combination videoimaging and lighting unit for producing a video feed according to claim 11, wherein another end of said articulating boom is mounted to one end of a vertically-extending mast.

13. The combination videoimaging and lighting unit for producing a video feed according to claim 12, wherein another end of said mast is attached to a wheeled base.