JP2008294755A - Video image recording apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To record a period in which events to be monitored occur without omission and to effectively use a record medium. <P>SOLUTION: A video image recording and distributing apparatus 1 is provided with a continuous record processing section 16 which continuously records image data received through a network and an alarm record processing section 17 which records the received image data during a period in which alarm signals indicating events are received. A recording mode switching section 15 selects either of the two recording modes and records the received image data on a recording apparatus 2. A CPU 11 calculates the frequency of reception of alarm signals by the recording mode switching section 15. When the alarm recording mode is selected, it switches the mode to the continuous recording mode if the calculated frequency of reception exceeds a predetermined threshold value, and continuously records the image data received by the continuous record processing section 16. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a video recording apparatus that is used in, for example, a video monitoring system and records a video captured by a monitoring camera.

  Video surveillance systems are installed for the purpose of crime prevention in hotels, buildings, convenience stores, financial institutions, etc., or accident prevention in public facilities such as dams and roads. In a general video monitoring system, a monitoring target area is imaged with a camera or the like, and the captured video is transmitted to a monitoring center such as a management office or a security room. The monitor monitors the object to be monitored based on the transmitted video, warns and warns according to the purpose and necessity, and records and stores the video.

  In recent years, in the field of such a video surveillance system, a network type video surveillance system that digitizes the video of a surveillance camera and transmits and monitors the video via an IP (Internet Protocol) network represented by the Internet has become widespread. . There is also a monitoring format such as “recording surveillance video and looking back at the recorded video when a problem occurs” in video surveillance, and customers of such “record-type surveillance” mainly at financial institutions and shops. There is a need.

  By the way, “record type monitoring” records all day every day, records only a certain time period from a certain time to a certain time, records only a holiday, records only when a person passes through a door, and moves in a certain area. There are various patterns depending on the monitoring target, such as recording only when there is. There are generally two patterns, and there are a case where video is recorded only during a predetermined time zone and a case where video is recorded only when some event occurs. The former is called schedule recording and the latter is called alarm recording. Alarm recording is used, for example, to record a person who passes through a certain door or to record a person who enters a danger area. However, even when monitoring people passing through the door, there are many people going in and out during the morning and evening rush hours, so the alarm recording frequently starts and ends the recording process, which may lead to event omissions. There is.

  Therefore, in order to avoid such risks, video surveillance recording can be set so that continuous recording is performed during busy hours and switching to alarm recording during busy hours such as at night. An apparatus is provided (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2001-86456 A

  However, even if the recording schedule is set as described above, many events do not always occur in the time zone set for continuous recording. If events rarely occur during continuous recording, it is useless. The disk will be used. On the other hand, if an event occurs frequently during alarm recording, there is a risk that the event will be missed, and there is a problem that it is difficult to set a recording schedule.

  The present invention has been made paying attention to the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a video recording apparatus capable of recording the generation period of the monitoring event without omission and effectively using the recording medium. .

  In order to achieve the above object, a video recording apparatus according to the present invention includes video receiving means for receiving video data obtained by imaging a monitoring target area, a recording apparatus for recording the received video data, and the monitoring target area. Alarm receiving means for receiving an alarm signal indicating the occurrence of an event, continuous recording mode for continuously recording the received video data in the recording device, and the received video during a period in which the alarm signal is received An alarm recording mode for recording data in the recording device; a recording means for selecting one of the modes; a calculating means for calculating the reception frequency of the alarm signal; the calculated reception frequency and a predetermined threshold value Comparing means, and when the alarm recording mode is selected in the recording means, the comparing means If the out reception frequency is determined to be higher than the threshold value, characterized by comprising a switching means for switching said recording means to said continuous recording mode.

  In the video recording device, the reception frequency of an alarm signal indicating the occurrence of an event is calculated, and when video data is recorded in the alarm recording mode, continuous recording is performed when the calculated reception frequency is higher than a threshold value. Switch to mode. With this configuration, even when the alarm recording mode is selected, if events occur frequently, the mode automatically switches to continuous recording mode, so that only the event occurrence period can be recorded reliably. It becomes possible. As a result, the capacity of the disk of the recording apparatus can be used efficiently, and video for a longer time can be recorded.

  Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a video recording apparatus capable of recording the generation period of the monitoring event without omission and effectively using the recording medium.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram showing an embodiment of a video monitoring system using a video recording apparatus according to the present invention.
This system includes a video recording / distributing device 1, a recording device 2, a monitoring camera 3, a sensor 4, a video transmitting device 5, a video receiving device 6, a video display device 7, and a network NW. The network NW is, for example, a network cable, a wireless LAN (Local Area Network), a public line, or the like, and has a role of transmitting transmitted data. The network NW also includes network devices such as routers and hubs. The video recording / distributing device 1, the video transmitting device 5, and the video receiving device 6 are respectively connected to the network NW and can communicate with each other via the network NW. In FIG. 1, the number of devices connected to the video recording / distributing device 1 can be arbitrarily selected.

  The monitoring camera 3 is installed in the monitoring target area, and always captures the monitoring target area and generates video data. The sensor 4 is composed of, for example, a moving object detection sensor or a heat detection sensor, and outputs an alarm signal when an event such as a change or abnormality occurs in the monitoring target area. The video data generated by the monitoring camera 3 and the alarm signal output from the sensor 4 are input to the video transmission device 5.

  The video transmission device 5 is, for example, a Web encoder device, and encodes input video data. Then, the video transmission device 5 multiplexes the encoded video data and the alarm signal, converts them into a format suitable for network transmission, and sends them to the network NW. For example, when the video input from the monitoring camera 3 is an analog video, it is converted into a digital signal, and compression processing is performed depending on the transmission band of the network NW. Note that the monitoring camera 3 and the video transmission device 5 may be integrated as a single device such as a web camera.

  The video receiving device 6 is a decoder device that includes a network interface, an image codec, and an interface for outputting video to the video display device 7. The video receiving device 6 transmits a video browsing request to the video recording / distributing device 1, receives video data transmitted via the network NW in response to this request, and converts it into a form that can be displayed on the video display device 7. And output. For example, when the video display device 7 is a television monitor, the video reception device 6 performs analog conversion. In addition, when the received video is compressed and encoded video data, the video receiving device 6 performs an expansion process using an image codec.

  The video display device 7 is, for example, a display device such as a television monitor, a CRT, or a liquid crystal display (LCD). The video receiver 6 and the video display device 7 may be combined as a single device. For example, a form incorporated in a television monitor, a form of a computer connected to a CRT, or a form of a mobile terminal such as a mobile phone provided with a display device can be cited. The video receiving device 6 also includes an operation interface for instructing the video recording / distributing device 1 to perform playback such as playback and fast forward. This interface may be, for example, a GUI (Graphical User Interface) on a computer screen, or a control panel terminal connected to the video receiver 6.

  The recording device 2 is a medium for recording video such as a hard disk or a disk array. The recording device 2 is connected to the video recording / distributing device 1, for example, a dedicated interface such as SCSI (Small Computer System Interface), ATA (AT Attachment), and Fiber Channel, or SAN (Storage Area Network) or NAS (Network Attached Storage). Are connected by an interface using an IP network.

Here, the configuration of the video recording / distributing apparatus 1 according to the present invention will be described. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing an embodiment of the video recording / distributing apparatus 1.
The video recording / distributing device 1 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 11, a network interface (network I / F) 12, a recording device interface (recording device I / F) 13, a distribution processing unit 14, and a recording mode switching unit. 15, a continuous recording processing unit 16, and an alarm recording processing unit 17.

  The network I / F 12 receives video data and an alarm signal transmitted from the video transmission device 5 via the network NW under the control of the CPU 11. The recording apparatus I / F 13 reads / writes data from / to the recording apparatus 2 under the control of the CPU 11. The distribution processing unit 14 reads the monitoring data recorded in the recording device 2 in response to the video browsing request sent from the video receiving device 6, and sends the read monitoring data to the requesting video receiving device 6 in the network NW. To send through.

  The recording mode switching unit 15 switches the recording mode when recording the video data transmitted from the video transmission device 5. The recording mode includes a continuous recording mode by the continuous recording processing unit 16 and an alarm recording mode by the alarm recording processing unit 17. The continuous recording processing unit 16 continuously records video data received by the network I / F 23 in the recording device 2. The alarm recording processing unit 17 records the received video data in the recording device 2 during a period in which an alarm signal is received from the video transmission device 5, for example, when a person enters the danger area. That is, every time an alarm signal is received, the alarm recording processing unit 17 accesses the recording device 2 and performs a start / end process for recording the received video data. The alarm recording processing unit 17 may record video data for a certain period after the alarm signal is received.

  Next, the operation of the video recording / distributing apparatus 1 configured as described above will be described. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the procedure and contents of the video recording process of the video recording / distributing apparatus 1. It is assumed that the video recording / distributing device 1 records the received video data in the recording device 2 in the alarm recording mode by the alarm recording processing unit 17.

  In this state, the CPU 11 of the video recording / distributing apparatus 1 calculates the reception frequency per unit time for the alarm signal received via the network NW by the recording mode switching unit 15 (step S3a). The recording mode switching unit 15 compares the calculated alarm signal reception frequency with a predetermined first threshold value (step S3b). Note that the first threshold is set so that there is no omission of event recording even when events occur continuously and the recording start / end processing of the alarm recording processing unit 17 is frequently performed. When the recording mode switching unit 15 determines that the alarm signal reception frequency is lower than the first threshold, the CPU 11 continues the alarm recording mode, and when the reception frequency is determined to be higher than the first threshold. Is switched to the continuous recording mode by the continuous recording processing unit 16 (step S3c).

  On the other hand, the CPU 11 records video data in the continuous recording mode by the continuous recording processing unit 16 and calculates the reception frequency of the alarm signal by the recording mode switching unit 15 (step S3d). The recording mode switching unit 15 compares the calculated reception frequency with a predetermined second threshold (step S3e). The second threshold value is set so as to immediately switch to the alarm recording mode when the occurrence frequency of the event becomes low in consideration of the effective use of the disk of the recording device 2. When the recording mode switching unit 15 determines that the alarm signal reception frequency is higher than the second threshold, the CPU 11 continues the continuous recording mode, and when the reception frequency is determined to be lower than the second threshold. Is switched to the alarm recording mode by the alarm recording processing section 17 (step S3f).

  As described above, in the above-described embodiment, the video recording / distributing apparatus 1 receives the continuous recording processing unit 16 that continuously records video data received via the network and the alarm signal indicating the occurrence of the event. And an alarm recording processing unit 17 for recording the received video data during the period. The recording mode switching unit 15 records video data received by selecting one of these two recording modes in the recording device 2. The CPU 11 calculates the reception frequency of the alarm signal by the recording mode switching unit 15, and enters the continuous recording mode when the calculated reception frequency exceeds a predetermined threshold when the alarm recording mode is selected. The video data received by the continuous recording processing unit 16 is continuously recorded.

  With this configuration, even when the alarm recording mode is selected, if events occur frequently, the mode automatically switches to continuous recording mode, so that only the event occurrence period can be recorded reliably. It becomes possible. As a result, the capacity of the disk of the recording device can be used effectively, and it is possible to record video for a longer time.

  Therefore, according to the above-described embodiment, even when the alarm recording mode is selected, the video data is automatically recorded in the continuous recording mode if events occur frequently. By doing so, it is possible to reduce the disk capacity necessary for recording the video data, and it is possible to prevent omission of event recording even when the frequency of occurrence of events increases.

  The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, in the above embodiment, when switching from the continuous recording mode to the alarm recording mode, the mode is switched based on the reception frequency of the alarm signal. You may make it switch to alarm recording mode forcibly after progress. Even in this case, since the recording period in the continuous recording mode can be shortened, the disk of the recording apparatus 2 can be effectively used. In addition, the configuration and processing procedure of the video recording apparatus can be variously modified and implemented without departing from the gist of the present invention.

  In short, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment as it is, and can be embodied by modifying the constituent elements without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. Further, various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of constituent elements disclosed in the embodiment. For example, some components may be deleted from all the components shown in the embodiment. Furthermore, you may combine suitably the component covering different embodiment.

The figure which shows an example of a structure of the video surveillance system provided with the video delivery apparatus which concerns on this invention. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a video recording / distributing apparatus according to the present invention. The flowchart which shows the procedure and the content of the video recording process of a video recording delivery apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Video recording delivery apparatus, 2 ... Recording apparatus, 3 ... Surveillance camera, 4 ... Sensor, 5 ... Video transmission apparatus, 6 ... Video reception apparatus, 7 ... Video display apparatus, NW ... Network, 11 ... CPU, 12 ... Network Interface, 13 ... Recording device interface, 14 ... Distribution processing section, 15 ... Recording mode switching section, 16 ... Continuous recording processing section, 17 ... Alarm recording processing section.

Claims (1)

Video receiving means for receiving video data obtained by imaging the monitored area;
A recording device for recording the received video data;
Alarm receiving means for receiving an alarm signal representing the occurrence of an event in the monitored area;
A continuous recording mode for continuously recording the received video data in the recording device, and an alarm recording mode for recording the received video data in the recording device during a period in which the alarm signal is received, Recording means for selecting a mode,
Calculating means for calculating the reception frequency of the alarm signal;
Comparing means for comparing the calculated reception frequency with a predetermined threshold;
A switching means for switching the recording means to the continuous recording mode when it is determined that the reception frequency calculated by the comparing means is higher than a threshold value when the alarm recording mode is selected in the recording means; A video recording apparatus comprising:

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