JP2008263370A - Camera device and information distribution device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To acquire video information with high picture quality, by going back to a prescribed time from the of time of alarm generation, without compressing a network band. <P>SOLUTION: This camera device 20 is configured of an imaging part 21; a video signal processing part 22 for performing the compression processing of time series information, including at least a video signal generated by the imaging part 21; ring buffer parts 23A and 23B for storing time series information, whose compression processing has been performed by the video signal processing part 22 in a fixed cyclic transmission period; a communication part 27 for outputting the time series information stored in the ring buffer parts 23A and 23B to the outside; and a control part 25. When the transmission request of the time series information is received, the control part 25 outputs the time series information stored in the ring buffer part 23A, before a prescribed time with the reception time of the transmission request as a base point through the communication part to a network. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a camera apparatus and an information distribution apparatus, and more particularly to a camera apparatus and an information distribution apparatus suitable for application to a monitoring camera using a network camera.

  2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, camera devices that have a network interface that can be connected to a network and transmit captured images via the network have become widespread. Such a camera device is called a network camera or the like, and has an IP (Internet Protocol) address individually. This camera device is directly connected to the network, has a built-in Web server, FTP (File Transfer Protocol) server, FTP client, and e-mail client, and has many other functions including alarm management and program functions. Yes. By using such a camera device, a user can view a video or an image on a mobile phone terminal or a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as “PC”) in real time even from a distant place, or a mobile phone terminal or PC. It is possible to store video data and manage video and images. Such camera devices are used not only for crime prevention and disaster prevention, but also for monitoring pets and children, and their applications are wide-ranging.

  Using the camera device, video information is recorded in a file format or displayed when an abnormality occurs in a monitoring target. For example, a sensor for detecting an abnormality is attached to the camera device, and when the sensor detects the occurrence of an abnormality, an alarm signal indicating the occurrence of the abnormality is sent to the monitoring device via the network together with the video signal. And in the monitoring apparatus which received the alarm signal, the technique which can record the video information from the moment of occurrence of an abnormality based on the alarm signal, or can display on a display apparatus is proposed (for example, patent documents) 1).

  Although what is described in the above-mentioned patent document 1 needs to always send video information from the camera device to the monitoring device via the network, the information that can be transmitted in a unit time is limited in the network. When a large number of camera devices are connected to the network, it is impossible to always send high-quality video information. For this reason, a technique for controlling the image quality of video information in response to an alarm has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 2). In a configuration in which a plurality of camera devices are connected to one network, an alarm signal is transmitted to another camera device connected to the same network when an alarm is generated in one camera device. By limiting the amount of data that is transmitted and output by another camera device, the amount of transmitted data that can be output from the camera device, that is, the image quality is ensured.

JP 2001-231028 A JP 2005-269141 A

  By the way, with what is described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, it is not possible to record and display the video before the alarm is generated with high image quality on the receiving side. In order to obtain high-quality video on the receiving side, it is necessary to always transmit high-quality video signals from the camera device to the network, which puts pressure on the network bandwidth and is practically difficult to implement. There was a problem of being.

  In addition, the conventional camera device can only extract video information before the occurrence of an alarm as a file of a certain standard, and does not extract it as stream format data (hereinafter referred to as “stream data”). For this reason, there is a problem that handling on the receiving side of the monitoring device or the recording device becomes complicated. The file format data here has a finite length and the end of information is clear, whereas the stream format data refers to information whose information end is not clear. .

  The present invention has been made in view of such a point. By efficiently using the bandwidth of the network, the present invention achieves a desired quality by going back a predetermined time from the information request time without squeezing the bandwidth of the normal network. The purpose is to be able to obtain information.

  In order to solve the above problems, a camera device of the present invention includes an imaging unit, a video signal processing unit that performs compression processing of time-series information including at least a video signal generated by the imaging unit, and the video signal processing unit. A ring buffer unit that stores the compressed time-series information for a fixed round transmission period, a communication unit that outputs the time-series information stored in the ring buffer unit to the outside, and a time-series information transmission request received A control unit that controls the time series information stored in the ring buffer unit from a predetermined time before being output to the network through the communication unit, starting from the time when the transmission request is received. To do.

  According to the above configuration, the camera device can send information to the receiving side by going back a predetermined time from the alarm occurrence time.

  In the above invention, preferably, the video signal processing unit performs compression processing on the video signal from the imaging unit and includes time-series information including the first video signal and a second video signal. Generate series information. In addition, the ring buffer unit includes a first ring buffer unit that stores time series information including the first video signal generated by the video signal processing unit for a certain period, and constant time series information including the second video signal. And a second ring buffer unit for storing the period. Further, the control unit outputs time series information including the first video signal stored in the first ring buffer unit to the network in the first mode, and outputs the second ring in the second mode. Time-series information including a second video signal stored in the buffer unit from a predetermined time before is output to the network.

  According to the above configuration, in the first mode, the camera device outputs time-series information including the first video signal to the network, and in the second mode, the time-series information including the second video signal is output to the network. Therefore, time series information including different video signals depending on the mode can be acquired on the receiving side.

  Further, the information distribution apparatus of the present invention includes a signal processing unit that performs compression processing of time series information, a ring buffer unit that stores time series information compressed by the signal processing unit, and a fixed round transmission period; A communication unit that outputs the time-series information stored in the ring buffer unit to the outside, and a predetermined time stored in the ring buffer unit from the time when the transmission request is received when a transmission request for the time-series information is received And a control unit that controls to output the time series information from the front to the network through the communication unit.

  According to the above configuration, the information distribution apparatus can send information to the receiving side by going back a predetermined time from the alarm occurrence time point.

  According to the present invention, the quality of past time-series information transmitted from the information distribution apparatus on the transmission side can be switched for each mode. For example, when a camera device is used as an information distribution device, it is possible to send low-quality video information during normal times, and send high-quality video information when a time-series information sending request is received when an alarm occurs. . As described above, it is possible to efficiently use the network bandwidth and transmit information having a large data transfer rate to the request source by going back a predetermined time from the reference time without squeezing the bandwidth at the normal time.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The monitoring system 10 has a configuration in which a camera device 20, a recording device 40, and a monitoring device 50 are connected via a network 30. As the network 30, for example, a telecommunication network such as the Internet using a TCP / IP protocol, a LAN, or the like can be applied.

  Among them, the camera device 20 includes an imaging unit 21 (imaging unit), a video signal processing device 22 (video signal processing unit), ring buffer devices 23A and 23B (ring buffer unit), an external input device 24, a main arithmetic unit 25 ( Control unit), bus 26 and network control device 27 (communication unit).

  The imaging unit 21 includes an imaging device such as a charge coupled device (CCD), for example, and photoelectrically converts an optical image to be monitored captured via an optical lens (not shown) to generate an electrical signal. The electric signal is amplified as necessary, and then analog / digital conversion is performed to generate a digital video signal, and the digital video signal is sent to the video signal processor 22.

  The video signal processing device 22 performs transport stream data compression on the input digital video signal in accordance with, for example, the MPEG-2 system or MPEG-4 system standardized by MPEG (Moving Picture Experts Group). . Then, the digital video signal after the compression processing is appropriately sent to one of the ring buffer devices 23A and 23B according to the content of the compression processing. In the present embodiment, the digital video signal compressed while maintaining high image quality (high resolution) is stored in the ring buffer device 23A, and the image quality is lower than that compressed and stored in the ring buffer device 23A. The (low resolution) digital video signal is stored in the ring buffer device 23B. As described above, once the digital video signal is stored in the ring buffer devices 23A and 23B, fluctuations in the transmission speed due to the congestion of the network 30 (traffic) are absorbed.

  In addition, the video signal processing device 22 performs predetermined image processing such as detecting a difference by comparing images of adjacent frames in the digital video signal acquired from the imaging unit 21, and detects an abnormality of the monitoring target. Can do. Then, the detection result is output to the ring buffer device 23A or 23B, and notified to the main arithmetic device 25, and the main arithmetic device 25 detects the occurrence of an abnormality based on the detection result. Examples of the abnormality detected by the image processing in the video signal processing device 22 include detection of a moving object such as a suspicious person, an individual count, a congestion situation, and the like.

  The main arithmetic unit 25 is composed of a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), for example, and uses a RAM (Random Access Memory) as a work area, and performs predetermined control and calculation according to a program recorded in the ROM. When the main arithmetic unit 25 receives a digital video signal transmission request from the outside, the main arithmetic unit 25 sequentially controls one or both of the digital video signals stored in the ring buffer units 23A and 23B according to a program stored in the ROM. The data is sent to the recording device 40 and the monitoring device 50 connected to the network 30 through the device 27. At this time, in the normal mode (first mode), a low-quality digital video signal stored in the ring buffer device 23B is output to the network 30, and a special mode (second mode) such as an alarm is generated. Mode), a high-quality digital video signal stored in the ring buffer 23A is output to the network 30.

  The network control device 27 functions as an interface that mediates data between the camera device 20 and the network 30. Note that the network control device 27 is compatible with either standard of wired communication or wireless communication, and the camera device 20 can be connected to the network 30 via the network control device 27 by wire or wireless.

  The external input device 24 functions as an interface that receives sensor information from the sensor device 60 for detecting an abnormality to be monitored and sends the sensor information to the main arithmetic device 25 via the bus 26.

  The sensor device 60 includes a sensor 62 that is a detection unit and an output device 61, and is attached near the camera device 20 or directly to the camera device 20. The sensor 62 detects information corresponding to the type of sensor, converts the detection signal into a data format that can be output to the camera device 20 by the output device 61, and inputs the data to the external input device 24 of the camera device 20. The main arithmetic unit 25 determines that it is abnormal when each sensor information supplied from the sensor device 60 satisfies a predetermined condition such as exceeding a predetermined value. For example, examples of the sensor 62 include a sensor that detects meteorological data such as precipitation, wind speed, temperature, and atmospheric pressure, a wave height meter, a seismometer, and a door sensor.

  Furthermore, the camera device 20 includes a microphone, and acquires video information around the camera device 20 at the same time that the imaging unit 21 acquires video information to be monitored. The audio signal is also appropriately compressed by the video signal processing device 22. The main arithmetic unit 25 determines that it is abnormal when a predetermined condition is satisfied such that the volume of the sound information collected by the microphone exceeds a predetermined value. Thereby, even if there is no change in the video on the monitor, the occurrence of abnormality can be detected from the change in sound.

  In this way, the camera device 20 sends the digital video signal generated by the built-in imaging unit 21 to the video signal processing device 22 and performs compression processing of the digital video signal. The compressed digital video signal is stored in one of the ring buffer devices 23A and 23B depending on the content of the compression process. Then, the data is sent from the network control device 27 to the network 30 in the storage order according to the status of the monitoring target under the control of the main arithmetic device 25.

  Next, the recording device 40 will be described. The recording device 40 receives and records the digital video signal output from the camera device 20 via the network 30. The recording device 40 includes a main processing device 41, a network control device 43, and an external recording device 44, and these devices are connected to each other via a bus 42 so as to be able to perform data communication. As the external recording device 44, a hard disk drive, a nonvolatile memory such as a flash memory, or an external recording medium such as a CD-ROM or a DVD is applied. When recording the digital video signal sent from the camera device 20, the recording device 40 receives the digital video signal through the included network control device 43 and records it in the external recording device 44 under the control of the main arithmetic device 41. .

  Next, the monitoring device 50 will be described. The monitoring device 50 receives and displays the digital video signal output from the camera device 20 in real time (real time). The monitor can monitor the monitoring target by watching the video displayed on the monitoring device 50. The monitoring device 50 includes a main arithmetic device 51, a network control device 53, a video display device 54 such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), and an operation device 55 such as a pointing device. Has been.

  When browsing the video data sequentially transmitted from the camera device 20, the monitoring device 50 receives the video data from the camera device 20 through the included network control device 53, and is received by the main arithmetic device 51 or a video signal processing device (not shown). After the digital video signal is decompressed, it is displayed on the video display device 54.

  When the video data recorded in the recording device 40 is browsed by the monitoring device 50, for example, a compression that is recorded from the monitoring device 50 to the recording device 40 through the network 30 by operating the operation device 55 by the monitor. Recalls the processed digital video signal. The monitoring device 50 displays the digital video signal acquired from the recording device 40 on the video display device 54 after performing the same processing as described above.

  Here, the ring buffer devices 23A and 23B constituting the camera device 20 will be described. The ring buffer device is one of first-in first-out (FIFO) type memories, and is a memory that is logically formed in a ring shape by implementing an endless configuration by devising RAM addressing. . The ring buffer device has a data write pointer and a read pointer, and stores in order at the address indicated by the write pointer at the time of writing and functions as a buffer by reading sequentially from the address indicated by the read pointer at the time of reading. Such a ring buffer device is used, for example, when transmitting constantly generated information such as video data in a stream format to a line that cannot be transmitted immediately because the communication path is congested. Hereinafter, the video data transmitted to the network 30 by the camera device 20 of the present embodiment is video data in a stream format such as a transport stream.

  The operation of the ring buffer device will be described with reference to FIG. Here, as an example, a ring buffer device capable of storing 12 pieces of video data as still images will be described. The time information (t, t + 1,...) Described in each area represents the time when data was written in each area. In this example, the ring buffer device 23A is described. However, the ring buffer device 23B is the same as the ring buffer device 23A except for the image quality of the video data to be recorded.

  FIG. 2 (A) shows that the video data at time (t + 11) is currently stored by the main arithmetic unit 25 in a state where the ring buffer device 23A stores continuous still images from time t to time (t + 10). However, the video data at time (t + 5) is being taken out. The video data stored here is a digital video signal compressed by the video signal processing device 22, and the extracted video data has been compressed in the past. The extracted video data is sent from the network control device 27 to the network 30 under the control of the main arithmetic unit 25.

  At the next time (t + 12), as shown in FIG. 2B, the compressed video data of time t already sent to the network 30 is overwritten with the video data of time (t + 12) and at the same time The video data of (t + 6) is read and sent to the network 30. Similarly, as shown in FIG. 2C, the compressed video data at time (t + 1) already sent to the network 30 is overwritten with the video data at time (t + 13) and at the same time (t + 7). Are read and sent to the network 30. By repeating the same processing in this way, video data is sequentially sent from the ring buffer device 23A to the network 30.

  Generally, a network cannot always send out information continuously due to its congestion. Even in such a case, the ring buffer device can write new video information without delay without waiting for the stored video information to be transmitted to the network. It is widely used because video information stored earlier can be sent to a network without waiting.

  In the case of a conventional system, this ring buffer device is composed of a memory having a storage capacity corresponding to the expected network congestion situation. It was necessary to keep the video information flowing to the network at all times according to the procedure.

  On the other hand, in the system according to the present invention, a ring buffer device 23A having a sufficient storage capacity and a circular transmission period is prepared in the camera device 20, and high-quality video information is stored in the camera device 20. Here, the periodical transmission period refers to a period from when data is written to a certain area until it is rewritten with another data. In this embodiment, as an example, the periodical transmission period until data is written and erased is 1 minute. On the other hand, another ring buffer device 23B having a storage capacity corresponding to the degree of congestion of the network 30 and a cyclic transmission period is prepared.

  Note that the ring buffer device 23A that stores high-quality video information outputs the video information to the outside in response to a request, and therefore, the round transmission period may be set longer. Further, since the ring buffer device 23B only stores low-quality video information and sequentially outputs it, the round transmission period may be set shorter.

  During normal operation (first mode), the amount of data stored in the ring buffer device 23B, that is, low-quality video information with a low data transfer rate is sent to the network 30 and recorded by the recording device 40 based on the video information. Or monitored by the monitoring device 50. When a request is made to send high-quality video information with a large amount of data (data transfer rate) (second mode), the ring buffer device 23A uses a high-quality video information instead of the low-quality video information of the ring buffer device 23B. Image quality image information is sent to the network 30.

  For example, when a supervisor who is monitoring an object using the monitoring device 50 notices an abnormality, a predetermined time before the time when the abnormality occurs with respect to the camera device 20 via the network 30, For example, the transmission of video data from 10 seconds before is requested. The main arithmetic unit 25 of the camera device 20 extracts the video data from the ring buffer device 23A storing the high-quality video data back to the past 10 seconds, and transmits the video data to the monitoring device 50. Through this procedure, the supervisor can obtain high-quality video information before and after the occurrence of the abnormality and confirm the contents.

  Here, when transmitting video data from the camera device 20 to the monitoring device 50, the main processing device 25 determines whether or not there is a vacancy in the bandwidth of the network 30. If it is determined that the bandwidth of the network 30 is available, the main processing unit 25 writes the time interval (time width) when the past video data is written in the ring buffer device 23A from the time when the video data transmission request is received. ) Read from the ring buffer device 23A at shorter time intervals and output to the network 30. In this way, by sending the video data at a time interval shorter than the actual time, the receiving side can receive the video data earlier than the time actually taken to shoot the video.

  For example, in the case of a video signal having an interlace method of 30 frames per second and a vertical scanning frequency of 60 Hz, writing and reading are normally performed in units of 1/60 seconds. On the other hand, when reading is performed at a time interval shorter than the actual time, for example, at double speed, reading is performed in units of 1/120 seconds.

  Further, after the past video data is sent to the network 30, the main arithmetic unit 25 continues from the ring buffer unit 23A at a time interval shorter than the time interval at which it was written to the ring buffer unit 23A until it catches up with the current time. Video data is read and output to the network 30. In this way, the monitoring device 50 acquires high-quality video data from the ring buffer device 23A in a time shorter than real time and plays it back in fast-forward, and the time of the fast-playing video data is the current video. An operation such as switching to browsing of real-time video data when the data matches is also possible. In this way, when the receiving side acquires past video data, the monitor acquires video data at a time interval shorter than the actual time required for imaging, and further fast-forwards past video data, so that the supervisor can monitor the video before the occurrence of the alarm. It is possible to return to real-time video monitoring seamlessly.

  When recording the video data sent by the camera device 20 with the recording device 40, the recording device 40 notifies the abnormality notification from the monitoring device 50 by the operation of the supervisor, the abnormality notification by the sensor device 60, and the video signal processing device 22. In response to an alarm such as an abnormality found by image processing, the camera device 20 is requested via the network 30 for video data from 10 seconds ago, for example. That is, it requests the camera device 20 to send high-quality video data. When the camera device 20 is notified of a transmission request for high-quality video data, video data from 10 seconds before the occurrence of the alarm is sent to the recording device 40, and an alarm is generated including the video data 10 seconds before the occurrence of the alarm. The previous and next video data are recorded in the recording device 40.

  Next, an efficient use form of the network bandwidth by the monitoring system using the camera device of the present embodiment will be described.

  FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of an information transmission method by the conventional monitoring system 80, and schematically shows a state in which the camera devices 82, 83, 84 are connected to the network 30. The thickness of the line connecting each camera device 82 to 84 and the network 30 schematically represents the band of the high-quality video data 85 to 87 output from each camera device 82 to 84, and the diameter of the network 30 is Schematic representation of network bandwidth. In this example, it is displayed with a bold line, and the video data 85 to 87 output from the camera devices 82 to 84 have high image quality. In the case of the conventional method, in order to acquire high-quality video data before an alarm is generated on the receiving side from the camera device, it is necessary to constantly transmit the high-quality video data 85 to 87 from the camera devices 82 to 84. Therefore, the bandwidth of the network 30 has been pressed.

  FIG. 4 schematically shows a part of the monitoring system 10 of the present embodiment. The cameras 92, 93, and 94 have the same configuration as the camera device 20, and the description thereof is omitted. The thickness of the lines of the ring buffer devices 95, 96, and 97 schematically represents a band of high-quality video data stored in each of the camera devices 92 to 94. The thickness of the line connecting each camera device 92 to 94 and the network 30 schematically represents the bandwidth of the video data 101, 102, 103, 104 output from each camera device 92 to 94.

  In the monitoring system 10 of the present embodiment, under the control of the main arithmetic unit 25, the ring buffer devices 95, 96, and 97 store high-quality video data for a certain period of time according to the circulation transmission period, and at the same time, low-quality video. Data 101 to 103 is transmitted to the network 30. When an alarm is generated in the camera device 92, the receiving-side recording device 40 (see FIG. 1) detects that the alarm has occurred in the camera device 92, and the recording device 40 sends high-quality video data to the camera device 92. Request transmission. Alternatively, the monitor notices that an abnormality has occurred on the monitor of the monitoring device 50 (see FIG. 1) and operates the operation device 55 to request the camera device 92 for high-quality video data. The camera device 92 transmits the high-quality video data 104 stored in the ring buffer device 95 back to the reception side until a predetermined time before the occurrence of the alarm, and the reception side acquires the high-quality video data before the alarm. To do.

  Thus, the camera device according to the present invention normally sends low-quality video data, and sends high-quality video data to the network only when there is an instruction to send high-quality video data, such as when an alarm occurs. It is possible to efficiently use the limited bandwidth of the network and suppress congestion.

  By the way, instead of shifting from the first mode to the second mode described above, low-quality video information is transmitted from the ring buffer device 23B without interruption, and at the same time, high-quality video information is transmitted from the ring buffer device 23A. You may make it change to the 3rd mode which transmits without.

  Since the video data of the ring buffer device 23A has a higher image quality than that of the ring buffer device 23B, video data with different image quality is not required at the normal time, but in the case of stream format data, continuous video data is desired. It is. Specifically, once the low-quality video data is cut and the high-quality video data is acquired, a break occurs in the portion, or the time stamp of each video data is seen in the subsequent processing and the connection is made without breaks. Processing is necessary. Accordingly, there is a possibility that video data necessary for continuous reproduction may be lost, and it takes time and effort to connect video data seamlessly. Therefore, continuous video data is desirable.

The following can be considered as a modification of the above-described embodiment.
<First Modification>
The camera device does not send video data of a high quality before a certain point in time, that is, a past high-quality video data according to a request from the recording device 40 or the monitoring device 50 by the operation of the supervisor, Send video data with high image quality. For example, the video signal processing device 22 inside the camera device performs image processing to detect an abnormality of the monitoring target, or indicates a monitoring target abnormality such that a detection signal supplied from the sensor device 60 exceeds a predetermined threshold. In such a case, the camera device transmits high-quality video data to the network without waiting for a transmission request from the reception side. As a result, the sending camera device itself determines whether or not to send the video data, eliminating the delay time waiting for the sending request from the receiving side, and quickly responding to the monitored abnormality to quickly produce high-quality video. Data can be transmitted.

<Second Modification>
In the above embodiment, video data in a stream format that can be viewed in real time has been described as time-series information. The information is not limited to this, and any information having a time axis may be used. For example, time-series accompanying information such as moving object detection, individual count, and congestion status obtained by image processing of a digital video signal by the video signal processing unit 22 may be used. In the case of voice information collected by a microphone, time-series information acquired by the sensor device 60, or a composite form thereof.

  For example, based on the precipitation information acquired by the sensor device 60, the main arithmetic unit 25 of the camera device 20 creates time-series precipitation image data and sends it to the network 30. The camera device may send video data with one or more combinations of these time-series information, or may send only time-series information excluding video data. Furthermore, if the receiving device or the monitor can select either video data, time-series information excluding video data, or information including both, the necessary information can be acquired according to the situation, so monitoring accuracy And efficiency is improved.

<Third Modification>
Under normal conditions, the receiving side does not acquire video data at all, and the alarm is triggered to acquire high-quality video data before the occurrence of the alarm. In this way, since extra video data does not flow through the network during normal times, network congestion can be avoided.

  As described above, the present invention does not constantly transmit high-quality video data from the camera device to the network, but detects an alarm based on image processing and detects an alarm based on sensor information of a sensor device attached to the camera device. It is possible to acquire high-quality video data before detection or generation of an alarm such as detection and generation of an alarm by the operation of a supervisor, and to reproduce and record the video data. In this way, the time series information such as video data for a certain period of time is temporarily stored in the camera device and sequentially acquired from past information in response to an alarm, so that the network bandwidth in normal times is not compressed. Video data before and after the occurrence of an alarm can be acquired effectively. Furthermore, since the video data is handled as time-series information such as stream format data, the handling in the recording device and the monitoring device can be eliminated compared to the file format data.

  In addition, when the monitor notices an abnormality, the video information can be confirmed again after returning by a predetermined time within the circular transmission period of the ring buffer device. At this time, it is possible to return to the monitoring of the real-time video seamlessly by fast-forwarding the past video information.

  The example in which the camera device of the present invention is applied to a network camera has been described. However, a USB (Universal Serial Bus), IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers) 1394, etc. that are connected to a PC and can transfer images in real time are described. The present invention can also be applied to a camera device such as a Web (World Wide Web) camera having an interface.

  In addition, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and instead of a camera device, the present invention is used for an information distribution device that does not have an imaging unit and only distributes information. Needless to say, various modifications and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

It is a block diagram explaining the monitoring system concerning one embodiment of the present invention. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing of the ring buffer apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing of the conventional information transmission system. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of the information transmission using the ring buffer apparatus based on one Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Surveillance system, 20 ... Camera apparatus, 21 ... Imaging part, 22 ... Video signal processing part, 23A, 23B ... Ring buffer apparatus, 25 ... Main arithmetic unit, 27 ... Network control apparatus, 30 ... Network, 40 ... Recording apparatus 50 ... monitoring device, 60 ... sensor device

Claims (13)

An imaging unit;
A video signal processing unit that performs compression processing of time-series information including at least the video signal generated by the imaging unit;
A ring buffer unit for storing time series information compressed by the video signal processing unit for a fixed round transmission period;
A communication unit for outputting the time series information stored in the ring buffer unit to the outside;
When receiving the transmission request of the time series information, control to output the time series information from the predetermined time stored in the ring buffer unit through the communication unit from the time when the transmission request is received A control unit,
A camera device comprising: The video signal processing unit performs compression processing on the video signal from the imaging unit, and generates time series information including a first video signal and time series information including a second video signal,
The ring buffer unit includes a first ring buffer unit that stores time-series information including the first video signal generated by the video signal processing unit for a certain period, and time-series information including the second video signal. And a second ring buffer unit for storing
The control unit outputs time-series information including the first video signal stored in the first ring buffer unit to the network in the first mode, and the second mode in the second mode. Output to the network time-series information from a predetermined time before including the second video signal stored in the ring buffer unit of
The camera apparatus according to claim 1. The control unit controls to transition from the first mode to the second mode by receiving the transmission request for the time-series information.
The camera device according to claim 2. The control unit transitions from the first mode to the third mode by receiving the transmission request of the time series information,
Time series information including the first video signal stored in the first ring buffer unit is output to the network, and at the same time, the second video signal stored in the second ring buffer unit is included. Control to output time-series information from before time to the network,
The camera device according to claim 2. The image by the second video signal included in the time series information has higher image quality than the image by the first video signal.
The camera device according to claim 2. The control unit controls the transition from the first mode to the second mode when it is detected that an abnormality has occurred in the photographing target.
The camera device according to claim 2. The control unit transitions from the first mode to the third mode upon detecting that an abnormality has occurred in the subject to be photographed,
Time series information including the first video signal stored in the first ring buffer unit is output to the network, and at the same time, the second video signal stored in the second ring buffer unit is included. Control to output time-series information from before time to the network,
The camera device according to claim 2. The time series information includes difference information generated by performing image processing on an image based on the video signal in the video signal processing unit,
The camera apparatus according to claim 1. A microphone,
The time series information includes an audio signal obtained from the microphone.
The camera apparatus according to claim 1. A sensor device;
The time series information includes image information generated based on information obtained from the sensor device.
The camera apparatus according to claim 1. When the control unit determines that there is a vacancy in the bandwidth of the network, the time-series information in the past from the time when the transmission request is received, at a time interval shorter than the time interval when the ring buffer unit was written. Read from the ring buffer unit and output to the network,
The camera device according to claim 2. The control unit transmits the past time-series information to the network, and then transmits the time-series information from the transmission request time to the present at a time interval shorter than the time interval when the ring buffer unit is written. Read from the ring buffer and output to the network,
The camera device according to claim 11. A signal processing unit for compressing time series information;
A ring buffer unit for storing the time-series information compressed by the signal processing unit;
A communication unit for outputting the time series information stored in the ring buffer unit to the outside;
When receiving the transmission request for the time series information, control to output the time series information from the predetermined time stored in the ring buffer unit through the communication unit based on the time when the transmission request is received A control unit,
An information distribution apparatus comprising:

Images