WO2019181609A1

WO2019181609A1 - Monitoring system and monitoring method

Info

Publication number: WO2019181609A1
Application number: PCT/JP2019/009704
Authority: WO
Inventors: 藤井　幸; 正紀住吉; 洸山崎
Original assignee: 株式会社日立国際電気
Priority date: 2018-03-20
Filing date: 2019-03-11
Publication date: 2019-09-26
Also published as: JP7062753B2; JPWO2019181609A1

Abstract

Provided is a feature with which it is possible to determine the necessity of support for a visually-impaired person visiting a specific facility. A white cane detector 111, wherein: a white cane detection unit 121 detects a white cane 102 from an image captured by an imaging device 107; when the white cane 102 is detected by the white cane detection unit 121, a white cane behavior analysis unit 122 measures the number of times the white cane 102 is shaken within a fixed time thereafter; a support-needing-person determination unit 123 compares the measured number of times (number of times the white cane is shaken) as measured by the white cane behavior analysis unit 122 with a prescribed threshold value and determines whether or not support for a visually-impaired person 101 using the white cane 102 is needed; and a support indication unit 124 notifies station staff about the need for support when it is determined by the support-needing-person determination unit 123 that support is needed.

Description

Monitoring system and monitoring method

The present invention relates to a monitoring system that monitors an image of a predetermined area with a monitoring device.

Conventionally, a monitoring system having a function of performing image processing on an image captured by a camera and detecting a predetermined object in the image has been put into practical use. For example, in Patent Document 1, an observation object is determined from a predetermined area of an image, object feature information is created from the observation object, an action type is determined from the object feature information, and whether or not the observation object is a caution object is determined. Techniques to do this are disclosed.

JP 2017-028364 A

As one form of the above monitoring system, there is a white cane detection system that detects the presence of a person with a white cane in a monitoring area such as a station and notifies a station staff or the like. However, in the conventional white cane detection system, it is possible to notify that there is a person with a white cane, but it is the first time to use a station whether it is a person who always uses a station etc. and does not need support I couldn't judge whether he was in need of support in order to do that.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-described conventional circumstances, and provides a technique capable of determining the necessity of support for a visually handicapped person who has visited a specific facility. Objective.

In the present invention, in order to achieve the above object, the monitoring system is configured as follows.
That is, in a monitoring system that monitors an image obtained by capturing a predetermined area with a monitoring device, the monitoring device detects the predetermined wand from the image captured by the imaging device, and the wand detection unit detects the predetermined wand. When a cane is detected, a cane behavior analyzing means for analyzing the behavior of the cane within a certain period of time thereafter, based on the analysis result of the behavior of the cane by the cane behavior analyzing means, to the user of the cane And a supporter determining means for determining whether or not support is necessary.

With such a configuration, it is necessary for the visually handicapped person in an unfamiliar place to grasp the situation of the surroundings and to grasp the situation of the surroundings more frequently and to support the visually handicapped person. It becomes possible to discriminate.

Here, the cane behavior analyzing unit measures the number of times the cane is swung within the predetermined time as the behavior of the cane, and the supporter determining unit requires the number of times the cane swings exceeds a predetermined threshold value. Furthermore, it may be configured to determine that there is a need for support for the user of the cane.

The behavior of the cane may be analyzed by, for example, tracking a specific pattern portion attached to the cane, or may be analyzed by tracking the tip of the cane.

According to the present invention, it is possible to determine the necessity of support for a visually handicapped person who has visited a specific facility.

It is a figure explaining the outline | summary of the white cane detection system which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the functional block of the white cane detection system of FIG. It is a figure explaining the measurement of the frequency | count of a white cane swing. It is a figure which shows the example of a white cane. It is a figure which shows the example of a portable radio. It is a figure which shows the example of the flowchart of the process by a white cane detection apparatus.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 shows an outline of a white cane detection system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 shows an example of functional blocks of the white cane detection system of FIG. The white cane detection system is one form of a monitoring system, and the following description will be given taking an example of application to a railway station.

Generally, a visually handicapped person (especially a person who is unfamiliar with the station) 101 using the station passes the ticket gate 104 along the Braille block 103 while using the white cane 102. Therefore, in the present system, an imaging device 107 that images an area near the Braille block 103 before the entrance of the ticket gate 104 in the station is installed. The imaging device 107 is arranged so that a person passing near the braille block 103 can be photographed including the white cane when the person uses the white cane.

The imaging device 107 is connected via a network 108 so as to be communicable with each device constituting the system. As the imaging device 107, various types of devices such as a network camera having a built-in encoder for compressing and encoding a captured image and sending it to the network 108, an analog camera connected to the network 108 via a separate encoder, etc. Can be used. Image data is stored in JPEG format or H.264 format in order to reduce the transmission amount in the network 108. The compression processing may be performed by an encoding method such as H.265.

As shown in FIG. 2, the network 108 of this system is configured mainly by a network switch (NW-SW) 201 (generally configured by a plurality of units). An image photographed by the imaging device 107 is converted according to the Ethernet (registered trademark) protocol and transmitted to the decoder 110 via the network switch 201. The decoder 110 can return the received image data to an image and display it on a monitor 112 connected to the decoder 110.

Further, the image data transmitted from the imaging device 107 is also transmitted to the white cane detection device 111, and the white cane detection device 111 performs image analysis. Further, a wireless transmission system 109 is connected to the network switch 201, and voice communication and data communication with the portable wireless device 113 are possible via wireless (for example, a train wireless system).
In FIG. 2, each device is connected by a LAN cable except between the wireless transmission system 109 and the portable wireless device 113, but may be connected to be communicable wirelessly.

The white cane detection device 111 includes a white cane detection unit 121, a white cane behavior analysis unit 122, a supporter determination unit 123, and a support instruction unit 124.
When the visually handicapped person 101 with the white cane 102 appears in the station premises and is photographed by the imaging device 107, the image data is transmitted to the white cane detection device 111. The white cane detection device 111 performs image processing on the received image data by the white cane detection unit 121 to detect the white cane 102 included in the image. As a method for detecting a white cane, a method using a background difference image, a Hough transform, a deep learning technique, or the like can be used. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2015-32133, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2012-124659, The technique disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2016-057998 can be used.

When the white cane 102 is detected, the white cane detecting device 111 analyzes the behavior of the white cane 102 by the white cane behavior analyzing unit 122. In this example, as the behavior of the white cane 102, the number of times the white cane 102 is shaken within a predetermined time is measured. Visually impaired people in unfamiliar places are expected to shake the white cane more frequently to understand the surrounding situation, so measuring the number of white canes is unfamiliar and needs support It is possible to determine whether the situation is present.

As shown in FIG. 4, many white canes have a pattern portion 401 painted in a color (for example, red) that is easily noticeable by human eyes at a predetermined position on the front side from the tip. Accordingly, the white cane behavior analysis unit 122 detects the pattern portion 401 from the image and tracks the position thereof, thereby measuring the number of times the white cane is swung. The number of times the white cane is swung may be measured by tracking the position of another pattern painted on the white cane or the tip of the white cane as a clue.

The measurement of the number of white cane swings will be specifically described with reference to FIG. The imaging device 107 captures a predetermined number of images per second (30 frames per second in the NTSC system). In FIG. 3, images (frames) are displayed side by side in a time series from left to right, and a situation in which the visually handicapped person 101 is shaking the white cane 102 is photographed in each frame. For convenience of explanation, it is assumed that the white cane 102 has a pattern portion 401.

FIG. 3 shows a situation in which the position of the pattern portion 401 moves for each frame. In order to make the position of the pattern portion 401 easy to understand, the center of the pattern portion 401 is set as a reference point 301 (white circle). The coordinates are represented by (x _n , y _n ). In each frame, the solid white cane indicates the actual white cane in the frame, and the broken white cane indicates the white cane in the previous frame. Note that the broken white cane is shown for convenience of explanation and is not shown in the actual image.
The white cane behavior analysis unit 122 tracks the position of the reference point 301 by using an image processing technique (for example, an optical flow technique for obtaining a motion vector of an object in an image), and thus for a certain time (for example, 5 seconds). The number of times the white cane 102 is swung is measured.

Based on the behavior of the white cane analyzed by the white cane behavior analysis unit 122, the white cane detection device 111 requires support for the visually impaired 101 using the white cane 102 (hereinafter also referred to as a white cane user). Whether or not a person is a supporter is determined by the supporter determination unit 123. In this example, when the number of times the white cane swings within a certain time representing the behavior of the white cane exceeds a predetermined threshold value, it is determined that the person is a supporter, and otherwise, it is determined that the person is not a supporter.

When it is determined that the visually impaired person 101 who uses the white cane 102 is a supporter, the white cane detection device 111 instructs the station staff to support the station staff. Specifically, the support instruction unit 124 causes the portable wireless device 113 carried by the station staff 106 to output a notification message for notifying the station staff 106 of the presence of the person requiring support via the wireless transmission system 109. . For example, as shown in FIG. 5, the portable wireless device 113 displays information and a voice output of a notification message that includes information on a ticket gate where a person requiring support (a visually impaired person) is present and prompts the ticket gate to go to support. .

In the above notification message, the ticket gate to which the station staff should go can be specified from the imaging device that captured the support person if there is correspondence data between the imaging device and the ticket gate. Further, the message part other than the ticket gate information can be a fixed message. The notification message may be sent from the white cane detection device 111 or may be sent from the wireless transmission system 109 in accordance with an instruction from the white cane detection device 111. When the station staff 106 is carrying the tablet device, the station device 106 may be transmitted including the image data to display the local situation.

Further, when the support instruction unit 124 determines that the visually impaired person 101 needs to be supported, the support instruction unit 124 controls the decoder 110 to display the live video by the imaging device 107 photographing the person on the monitor 112. When a plurality of imaging devices are installed at a station, the switching may be forcibly switched to display a live video of the corresponding imaging device. As a result, the station manager 105 monitoring the monitor 112 can confirm the local situation in real time with the video, and can give appropriate instructions to the station staff 106.

FIG. 6 shows an example of a flowchart of processing by the white cane detection device 111.
The white cane detection device 111 acquires an image taken by the imaging device 107 (step S11), and performs white cane detection processing on the image (step S12).
When the white cane 102 is not detected as a result of the white cane detection process (step S13; No), the process returns to the acquisition of the captured image (step S11). On the other hand, when the white cane 102 is detected (step S13; Yes), the number of times the white cane is swung within a predetermined period thereafter is measured (step S14).

As a result, when the number of white cane swings is equal to or less than the predetermined threshold (step S15; No), it is determined that the white cane user is not a supporter and the process returns to the acquisition of the captured image (step S11). . On the other hand, when the number of white cane swings exceeds a predetermined threshold (step S15; Yes), it is determined that the white cane user is a supporter and the presence of the supporter requiring support by the portable wireless device 113, And the display of the live image of the imaging device 107 by the monitor 112 is executed.

As described above, in the monitoring system of this example, in the white cane detection device 111, the white cane detection unit 121 detects the white cane 102 from the image captured by the imaging device 107, and the white cane behavior analysis unit 122 When the white cane 102 is detected by the white cane detecting unit 121, the number of times the white cane 102 is shaken within a certain period of time thereafter is measured, and the supporter determining unit 123 is measured by the white cane behavior analyzing unit 122 The number of times (the number of times the white cane is swung) is compared with a predetermined threshold value to determine whether or not there is a need for support for the visually impaired person 101 who uses the white cane 102. When it is determined by 123 that there is a need for support, the station staff 106 is informed that there is a need for support.

According to such a configuration, a visually handicapped person in an unfamiliar place needs to support the visually handicapped person by grasping the situation where the white cane is waving more frequently in order to grasp the surrounding situation. Can be determined. Therefore, it is possible to encourage the station staff to support only those who really need support, and the labor of the station staff can be reduced.

Here, in this example, the white cane detection device 111 corresponds to the monitoring device according to the present invention. Note that the function of the monitoring device according to the present invention may be built in the imaging device 107 so that the imaging device 107 determines the presence or absence of a supporter.

Also, the behavior of the white cane may be analyzed from a viewpoint other than the number of times the white cane is shaken. For example, the manner of swinging the white cane (the movement pattern of the white cane) may be analyzed. That is, it is conceivable to pattern a white cane swinging method that is unique to visually impaired people in unfamiliar places and register in advance, and if a similar swinging method is detected, it is determined that the person needs support .

By the way, there is a possibility that the behavior of the white cane cannot be analyzed correctly when the white cane is temporarily hidden from the imaging device by another passerby and cannot be photographed. Therefore, a mechanism for determining whether or not the person needs support by another means may be added. Specifically, for example, an imaging device is installed at an entrance to a station premises and a ticket gate, and a white cane is detected from images captured by the respective imaging devices. Then, the time required for the white cane user using the white cane to move from the entrance to the ticket gate is measured, and if the travel time exceeds the predetermined time, the white cane user supports Is determined to be necessary.

When measuring the travel time from the entrance to the ticket gate, it is assumed that there are multiple white cane users at the same time, so determine whether the person photographed with each imaging device is the same person or a different person There is a need to. As a method for determining whether or not they are the same person, for example, when the white cane user passes through the entrance, the image of the white cane user's clothes and belongings is detected from the image taken by the entrance imaging device and registered as a key image. In addition, when a white cane user passes through the ticket gate and an image having the same feature amount as the key image is detected from the image captured by the imaging device at the ticket gate, the person photographed at the entrance and the ticket gate A method of determining the person photographed in step 1 as the same person can be considered.

In the above description, the support for the visually impaired using a white cane has been described. However, the present invention is also applied to the support for a visually impaired person using a cane of another color (for example, yellow or red). Needless to say, the characteristics of a cane that may be used by a visually impaired person may be set in advance. In addition to the ticket gates of the stations, it is also possible to monitor elevators, escalator platforms, stairs, platforms, and the like to determine the presence or absence of persons requiring support. In addition, facilities to which the present system is applied are not limited to railway stations, and can be applied to various facilities such as department stores and event venues.

Although the present invention has been described in detail above, it is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to the system described here and can be widely applied to systems other than those described above.
The present invention can also be provided as, for example, a method and method for executing the processing according to the present invention, a program for realizing such a method and method, and a storage medium for storing the program.

The present invention can be used in a monitoring system that monitors an image of a predetermined area with a monitoring device.

101: visually impaired person, 102: white cane, 103: Braille block, 104: ticket gate,
105: Station administrator, 106: Station staff, 107: Imaging device, 108: Network, 109: Wireless transmission system, 110: Decoder, 111: White cane detection device, 112: Monitor, 113: Portable wireless device, 121: White Cane detection unit, 122: White cane behavior analysis unit, 123: Supporter determination unit required, 124: Support instruction unit, 201: Network switch (NW-SW), 301: Reference point, 401: Pattern unit

Claims

In a monitoring system that monitors an image of a predetermined area with a monitoring device,
The monitoring device is
Wand detection means for detecting a predetermined wand from the image;
When the cane is detected by the cane detection means, a cane behavior analysis means for analyzing the behavior of the cane within a certain period of time thereafter;
A monitoring system comprising: a supporter determining unit that determines whether or not the user of the cane needs to be supported based on the analysis result of the behavior of the cane by the cane behavior analyzing unit.
The monitoring system according to claim 1,
The cane behavior analyzing means measures the number of times the cane is swung within the predetermined time as the behavior of the cane,
The support system determining unit determines that there is a need for support for the user of the cane when the number of times the cane is swung exceeds a predetermined threshold.
The monitoring system according to claim 1,
The monitoring system characterized in that the cane behavior analyzing means analyzes the behavior of the cane by tracking a specific pattern portion attached to the cane.
The monitoring system according to claim 1,
The cane behavior analyzing means analyzes the behavior of the cane by tracking the tip of the cane.
In a monitoring method for monitoring an image obtained by imaging a predetermined area by a monitoring device,
When the predetermined wand is detected from the image, the monitoring device analyzes the behavior of the wand within a predetermined time thereafter, and supports the user of the wand based on the analysis result of the behavior of the wand A monitoring method characterized by determining whether or not there is a necessity.