JP2000059765A - Monitor system and monitor camera apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To monitor the state in a room during one's absence in response to a call from a visit place, to realize power saving and to facilitate the buildup, revision and maintenance of the monitor system. SOLUTION: A server 3 that controls plural monitor cameras apparatuses 2 and transfers image data, in response to an instruction by a portable telephone set 1 with a TV, is installed. Furthermore, a means that relays transmission and reception data between the server 3 and the monitor camera apparatuses 2 is provided to each monitor camera apparatus 2 so as to suppress the power required for communication.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a monitoring system capable of externally monitoring the state of a room or the like in response to a call from the outside, facilitating layout change and maintenance, and a monitor camera used in the monitoring system. It concerns the device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art With the recent development of nuclear families and double-income households, the need for security systems at home has been increasing. To meet this demand, various forms of monitoring systems have been provided as home security systems. It is essential for this monitoring system to be able to monitor indoor conditions from the outside, and its configuration is to transmit information collected by sensors or monitor camera devices installed in the home to a monitoring center at a remote location, It is typical for a worker to monitor around the clock. In this monitoring system, the indoor situation is constantly monitored by a sensor or a monitor camera device at the monitoring center, so that the detection rate of occurrence of an abnormality in the room is high and the safety is excellent. On the other hand, since the entire process from installation to operation of the monitoring system is left to a third party, the following various problems occur. For example, the scale of a monitoring center for constantly monitoring indoor conditions using a public telephone line or the like becomes large, and the cost for resident monitoring personnel increases. Further, as the number of monitor camera devices arranged in the room increases, the power consumption by the monitor camera device on the monitored side increases.

[0003]

In the conventional surveillance system and the monitor camera device, as described above, complete management by a third party is premised, so that the installation cost of the system and
There was a problem that operation costs became high.

Further, in order to check the indoor situation from outside, a security company is contacted to hear the situation, and a security guard intervenes between the contractor and the home. There was a problem that the personnel cost increased the cost.

[0005] Furthermore, the time and the number of times of checking the indoor conditions from outside are restricted, and as the number of contractors increases, the time that each security guard can allocate to each contractor decreases, and the service is reduced. There was a problem that the risk of lowering occurred.

Further, it is difficult for the contractor himself to check the situation, and it is also difficult to change the equipment contents and security contents such as changing the location of the monitor camera device in the home.

[0007] Further, there is another problem that a dedicated frame is required for mounting the monitor camera device on a wall surface or the like, and it is not easy for a contractor to change the layout.

Further, when a large number of monitor camera devices are installed in a home, the power consumption of all monitor camera devices increases, so that the power charge directly paid by the contractor side to maintain the system can be reduced. Had a problem that power saving had to be achieved.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and can reduce the cost of monitoring by making it possible to easily monitor the state of a room from outside.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a monitoring system and a monitor camera device that can achieve power saving and that can easily change a system configuration and perform maintenance.

[0010]

A surveillance system according to the present invention includes a portable terminal with a television device, an image pickup control of a plurality of monitor camera devices arranged in a monitored area, and a portable terminal with a television device. And a server that controls the transfer of the image data. The portable terminal with the television device can monitor the situation in the monitoring target area via the server as necessary.

[0011] In the surveillance system according to the present invention, the monitor camera device located at a position where the wireless communication distance from the server is short is different from the monitor camera device located at a position where the wireless communication distance from the server is long. The image processing apparatus includes a relay unit that relays captured image data and various types of control information wirelessly transmitted to and received from the server.

In a surveillance system according to the present invention, each monitor camera device and a server are wirelessly connected using a spread spectrum method.

[0013] In the monitoring system according to the present invention, the monitor camera device includes an independent power supply using a dry cell or a solar cell, and power supply management means for controlling power supply.

The monitoring system according to the present invention has a plurality of monitor camera devices connected to a server via a bus-like network, has an image pre-processing unit having a noise removal / contour processing function, and detects a change in an image and an image / image. Image data for performing data processing for data compression, and selectively transmitting and receiving image data having a magnitude of change of the image equal to or greater than a predetermined change with a server based on a result of detection of the change of the image. A processing unit is provided in each of the monitor camera devices, and the server performs transfer control of image data having a magnitude of the change amount equal to or larger than a predetermined change amount to a portable terminal with a television device.

[0015] A surveillance system according to the present invention includes a monitor camera device having an artificial retinal chip having an image preprocessing unit.

A monitor camera device according to the present invention is connected to a server by a bus-like network, has an image preprocessing unit provided with a noise removal / contour processing function, and has data for detecting a change in an image and compressing image data. An image data processing unit for performing processing and selectively transmitting and receiving image data having a change amount of the image equal to or more than a predetermined change amount with the server based on a change detection result of the image. It is.

The monitor camera device according to the present invention is provided with an artificial retinal chip having an image preprocessing unit.

The monitor camera device according to the present invention is provided with a power management means for controlling power supply.

The monitor camera device according to the present invention is provided with a power management means for shutting off the power supply to the imaging means at the time of standby according to a command from the server.

[0020] The monitor camera device according to the present invention is provided with a power management means for intermittently supplying power to the network connection means during a standby period for waiting for an imaging command from the server.

The monitor camera device according to the present invention is provided with an independent power source using a dry cell or a solar cell.

According to the monitor camera device of the present invention, the image data captured by the other monitor camera device and transmitted from the other monitor camera device via a wireless communication path to the server and the other monitor camera device are provided. Has relay means for relaying various control information transmitted and received wirelessly to and from the server.

In the monitor camera device according to the present invention, a network is formed by a communication path between the monitor camera devices that connects the monitor camera devices in sequence, and another monitor camera device captures an image and transmits the image to the server via the network. The relay means of the monitor camera device located between the other monitor camera device and the server relays the image data and various control information transmitted and received by the other monitor camera device to and from the server. It was made.

The monitor camera device according to the present invention is provided with an independent power source using a dry cell or a solar cell, and a power management means for controlling power supply.

A monitor camera apparatus according to the present invention uses a spread spectrum system for wireless connection with a server.

[0026]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below. Embodiment 1 FIG. FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a monitoring system according to a first embodiment. In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a mobile phone with a television device (hereinafter, referred to as a mobile phone with a TV), and 2 denotes a monitor camera arranged indoors. Device, 3
Is a server, 4 is a network provided in the home, 5 is a public line, and 6 is a base station for the mobile phone 1 with a TV. Note that the mobile phone with TV 1 corresponds to a mobile terminal with a television device. 31 is a connection circuit to the network 4 configured in the server 3, 32 is each monitor camera device 2
A frame memory for storing image data from the monitor camera device 2;
4 is a modem for performing data communication with the public line 5 and 35 is a TV
The decoding unit 36 decodes digital data, dial tone, voice, and the like from the portable telephone 1 with an instruction, and gives an instruction to the control unit 32. The decoding unit 36 converts the image data in the frame memory 33 into the public line 5 according to the instruction from the decoding unit 35. Is a transfer control unit for sending to

In the monitoring system according to the first embodiment, a plurality of monitor camera devices 2 and a server 3 that communicates with the network 4 and the public line 5 are connected to a network 4 installed in the home. Calling the server 3 from the mobile phone 1 with TV carried outside, controlling the imaging of the plurality of monitor camera devices 2, transferring / displaying image data to the mobile phone 1 with TV, and making the situation in the home necessary from outside Enable monitoring as needed. In addition, a monitor camera device 2 having a structure and a shape that facilitates a layout change as a monitoring system is adopted, and a configuration of connection to the network 4 is also configured to facilitate a layout change.

Next, the operation will be described. The plurality of monitor camera devices 2 and the server 3 constitute a network 4, for example, using a wired communication path using a coaxial cable or an optical fiber, or a wireless communication path using radio waves or infrared rays, and Is connected to the server 3 and the server 3 so that image data can be exchanged.

The server 3 includes a connection circuit 31 for connecting to the network 4, a control unit 32 for generating an operation command for each monitor camera device 2, and a frame memory 33 for storing image data from each monitor camera device 2. The image data of the monitor camera device 2 connected to the server camera 4 can be stored on the server 3.

The connection circuit 31 and the frame memory 33 are functional blocks indispensable for the conventional monitoring system. The connection circuit 31 and the modem 34 for performing data communication with the public line 5 and the digital data and dial tone Decoding unit 3 that decodes voices and the like and gives instructions to control unit 32
5. In response to an instruction from the decoding unit 35, the frame memory 33
Transfer controller 36 for transmitting the above image data to the public line 5
Is added to allow the user to monitor the situation at home from outside.

Next, the operation procedure of the monitoring system according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. First, the user dials from the mobile phone 1 with a TV set away from home, for example, to the server 3 at home (step ST1).
The server 3 performs user authentication work (for example, confirmation of the dialed password) on the decryption unit 35 (step ST2). After that, when the user designates the monitor camera device 2 by dial tone, voice, or the like, the designated monitor camera device 2 is identified (step ST3), and the start of imaging to the designated monitor camera device 2 and the photographing are performed. An instruction for collecting image data is sent from the commentary unit 35 to the control unit 3.
2 (step ST4). Based on this instruction,
The control unit 32 gives an instruction to perform imaging and transfer image data to the frame memory 33 via the network 4 to the corresponding monitor camera device 2 (step ST5). As a result, the monitor camera device 2 to which the instruction has been given starts imaging (step ST6).

Next, image data is transferred from the frame memory 33 to the portable telephone 1 with TV through the modem 34 and the public line 5 according to an instruction from the transfer control unit 36 (steps ST7 and ST8). The transferred image data is displayed as an image on the monitor of the mobile phone with TV 1 (step ST9). In this way, the room where the monitor camera device 2 is installed is monitored directly from the outside by the mobile phone 1 with a TV from outside.

In order to configure the network 4, a wireless connection using a spread spectrum method is effective from the viewpoint of confidentiality of information and efficiency of use of a radio wave band.

As described above, according to this embodiment,
It is possible to directly monitor the state of the room from outside without going through a third party. As a result, it is only necessary to request the intervention of a third party for security and monitoring only when necessary, and there is an effect that costs such as system operation costs can be reduced as compared with the case where a security company is always present.

Also, by adopting a configuration in which the monitor camera device 2 installed in various places in the home and the server 3 are connected by using a wireless communication path using radio waves and infrared rays, when monitoring the room, There is an effect that a monitoring system that can easily change the layout of the monitor can be obtained.

Embodiment 2 In the surveillance system described in the first embodiment, the time during which the server 3 and the monitor camera device 2 operate is considerably shorter, and most of the time the apparatus is in a standby state, depending on the frequency of calls. Therefore, it is very important to reduce the standby power of the server 3 and the monitor camera devices 2, especially the standby power of a large number of monitor camera devices 2. The monitoring system according to the second embodiment employs the configuration of the monitor camera device 2 that takes this point into account.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the monitor camera device 2 to which a function of reducing unnecessary power supply at the end of monitoring is added. In FIG. 3, reference numeral 21 denotes an imaging unit;
2 is a network connection unit (network connection means), 2
3 is a power supply unit, 24 is a power supply management unit (power supply management means), 25
Is a switch (power management means).

In the monitoring system according to the second embodiment, a power management unit 24 for controlling power supply is added to the configuration of the conventional monitor camera device including the imaging unit 21 and the network connection unit 22. In the configuration example of FIG. 3, the power supply to the imaging unit 21 is cut off using the switch 25 during standby by a power-off command sent from the control unit 32 of the server 3 via the network 4 and the network connection unit 22, and the standby state is set. Reduce power. For example, a typical CCD (Char)
When the Ge Coupled Device is used for the image pickup unit, the power can be reduced by about 1 W by turning off the power.

Further, if a time delay of 1 to 2 seconds is allowed between the image capturing instruction of the monitor camera device 2 and the start of image capturing, the standby power can be further reduced. FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the monitor camera device 102 that can reduce such standby power. 4, the same or corresponding parts as those in FIG. 3 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted. In FIG. 4, reference numeral 26 denotes an interval timer provided in the power management unit 24, and reference numeral 27 denotes a pulse generator. Reference numeral 125 denotes a switch (power management means) for turning on / off the power supply from the power supply unit 23.

The feature of the monitor camera device 102 is that, while waiting for an imaging command from the server 3 (standby period), the power supply to the network connection unit 22 is switched off by the switch 12.
5 to reduce the average power for intermittently supplying and maintaining the network connection function. The intermittent power supply is performed by using an interval timer 26 and a pulse generator 27, as shown in FIG.
Is generated, and the switch 12 is turned on only during the time width W.
5 is realized by closing. Thereby, the average power consumption of the network connection unit 22 decreases to the original value W / T. At this time, the period of the time interval T is the non-response period of the monitor camera device 102, and the monitor camera device 102
The response time from the imaging instruction to the start of imaging is specified. On the other hand, the time width W is defined by the time required to determine a command from the server 3. A typical value is the time interval T
Is 1 second, the command length from the server 3 is 1 Kbit, and it is assumed that the data is sent at a communication speed of 1 Mbps, the time width W is 0.001 second, and therefore, the W / T is 1/1000, and a large reduction in standby power can be realized. .

For example, when a wireless device covering an average house (several tens of m ² ) is used as the network connection unit 22, the average standby power is about 500 mW. Will decrease. Therefore, the configuration of the power reduction shown in FIG.
Sub mW by combining the standby power reduction configuration shown in
Level standby power can be expected, and long-term operation using primary and secondary batteries (several tens days to several hundreds with a 1 Ah battery)
Day) is also possible. In addition, it can be operated sufficiently even with irregular charging by a solar cell.

The property of operating with this independent power supply is as follows.
This is important in configuring a monitoring system that does not require power supply wiring and allows easy layout changes. In the monitoring system using the wireless communication path, the power consumption during communication can be reduced and the operation time can be further extended by devising the configuration method of the network 4.

Hereinafter, a description will be given of a network configuration method capable of reducing power consumption during communication and extending operation time. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration method of the server 3 and the monitor camera devices a, b, c,... Through which the operation time can be extended via a wireless network. In FIG. 6, T1, T2,
T3 transmits the image data captured by the own monitor camera device to the server 3, and the own monitor camera device
Has a function of transmitting and receiving various information for control between the server 3 and the image data transmitted by the other monitor camera device and captured by the other monitor camera device. It is a relay unit having a function of relaying various control information transmitted and received wirelessly between the devices.

For example, as shown in FIG. 6A, the communication distances to the server 3 are respectively r, 2r, and 3r. In the case of a one-to-one connection configuration, in order for all the monitor camera devices to communicate with the server 3, the monitor camera devices that are farther away from each other so that the minimum electric field strength at the location of the server 3 becomes equal have a larger transmission output. I have to.

In the configuration shown in FIG. 6A, the transmission power required for the monitor camera device c needs to be nine times (reciprocal of the square of the distance) the transmission power of the monitor camera device a.
On the other hand, if each monitor camera device is configured to relay information of another monitor camera device as shown in FIG. Communication at a distance r), and the power consumption of each monitor camera device can be made more uniform.

For example, when each of the monitor camera devices a, b, and c transmits once, the power consumption ratio of p: 4p: 9p is obtained in a one-to-one connection with the server 3, whereas the relay is considered. Then, the power consumption ratio is reduced to 3p: 2p: 1p.

The maintenance such as battery replacement of the monitor camera apparatus is also advantageous in the relay network configuration shown in FIG. For example, in the one-to-one connection with the server 3 in FIG. 6A, a monitor camera device at a longer distance requires larger transmission power, and the "battery life is shortened in proportion to the square of the distance". I will. In an ordinary monitor system, such a property is troublesome for a user because a monitor camera device at a long distance is in a place where few people go (ie, battery replacement is not easy) such as outdoors or away. On the other hand, if each monitor camera device relays the information of the other monitor camera device, the monitor camera device closer to the server 3 frequently relays the communication of the farther monitor camera device. "The battery life is shortened in inverse proportion to the distance." This has the advantage that less maintenance is required for a monitor camera device at a longer distance.

As described above, according to the second embodiment, a monitor camera device capable of reducing power consumption can be obtained.
In addition, a monitoring system capable of suppressing the sum of power consumed by all monitor camera devices by configuring the monitor camera device closer to the server 3 to be able to relay information of another monitor camera device located farther away. There is an effect that can be obtained. Further, when a battery or the like is used to supply power to each monitor camera device, there is an effect that a monitoring system that is easy to maintain can be obtained from the viewpoint of the frequency of battery replacement.

Embodiment 3 In addition, as a demand for a home monitor system, a mobile object with a TV that recognizes an abnormality such as a moving object existing in a place where no one should be or a person not in a place where a person should be present is called. A reporting function is desired. Further, a function of compressing and transferring image data having a large amount of information in order to suppress communication costs is also desired. However, if these functions are to be realized using a monitor camera device having only a simple imaging and data transfer function, the configuration of a monitoring system having a server 3 having a configuration as shown in FIG.
The image data of all monitor camera devices is concentrated on the image data processing unit 50 of the server 3, and the response speed decreases as the number of monitor camera devices increases. In addition, since the image data of all monitor camera devices is transferred to the server 3 irrespective of the presence or absence of an abnormality and the necessity / non-necessity of an image, a network 4 having a higher communication speed is required. For example, 128 × 128
Even image data of about a pixel and 8-bit gradation (black and white) has a size of 0.1 Mb, and in an inexpensive wireless / wired network (communication speed of 100 Kbps), (2 per second).
Only a small-scale system (such as handling only three pieces of data) can be configured.

To solve this problem, as shown in FIG. 7B, the image data processing unit 50 of the server 3 is moved to the monitor camera device side as image data processing units 50a, 50b and 50c, and each monitor camera device By performing the distributed processing of the image data, the image data can be converted into less information (for example, whether there is an abnormality or compressed image data) and then sent to the server 3. This solves the problem that the image data of the monitor camera device is concentrated and the response speed decreases as the number of monitor camera devices increases.

FIG. 8 shows a monitor camera device 103 for realizing the monitoring system having the configuration shown in FIG. 7B.
8, parts that are the same as or correspond to those in FIGS. 3 and 4 are given the same reference numerals, and descriptions thereof will be omitted. 8, 50a (50b, 50c) is an image data processing unit provided in each monitor camera device, 51 is an image pre-processing unit, 5
2 is a memory, and 53 is a motion recognition unit. The image data processing unit 50 includes an image pre-processing unit 51 that performs pre-processing (such as noise removal and contour processing) of an imaging result, a memory 52 that stores one-time imaging result, and a motion recognition unit 53. The motion of the image to be determined and the data 20
3 is realized.

Next, the operation of the image data processing section 50 will be described. First, after the first imaging result is processed by the image preprocessing unit 51, it is loaded into the memory 52. Subsequently, after a certain period has elapsed, the second imaging result is input to the motion recognition unit 53 via the image preprocessing unit 51. At this time, the first imaging result on the memory 52 is also called at the same time, and the motion recognition unit 53
Enter The motion recognizing unit 53 calculates the absolute value of the difference between the two pixels of the input two images and further sums the calculation results (the first two-dimensional image matrix is x [i] [j],
M = Σij | x, where y [i] [j] is the time
[I] [j] -y [i] [j] | is calculated. Since the sum of absolute differences m increases as the first and second image movements increase, the sum m can be used as the determination data 203 for determining the presence or absence of a moving object.

Therefore, first, the determination data 20 based on the sum of absolute differences of the image data is provided for each monitor camera device.
3 and sends it to the server 3, and selectively monitors only the image data having a large motion based on the value to transfer data between each monitor camera device and the server 3 and between the server 3 and the mobile phone 1 with a TV. The amount can be reduced.

As a result, a monitoring system that can use a cheaper network (that is, a slower line speed) is obtained.

The same effect can be obtained for image processing and recognition processing other than those described above by performing local processing on the monitor camera device side. Or FPG
A programmable device such as A may be used so that a plurality of processes can be selected by a program or connection information.

The imaging function and the preprocessing function (noise removal /
Using an artificial retinal chip (registered trademark of Mitsubishi Electric Corporation) that can collectively process contour processing, etc., simplifies the configuration of the image data processing unit 50 and increases the amount of extra chip area by adding memory or performing another recognition process. It can be allocated to the mounting of means.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing an example of a monitor camera device 104 having a function of detecting a moving object using the artificial retinal chip. In FIG. 9, the same or corresponding parts as those in FIG. 8 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted.
In FIG. 9, reference numeral 501 denotes an image data processing unit when an artificial retinal chip is used; 502, an artificial retinal chip;
Denotes an image preprocessing unit, and 502b denotes an imaging unit.

As described above, according to the third embodiment, the determination data 203 based on the sum of the absolute values of the image data is obtained for each monitor camera device. The server 3 selectively monitors only the image data, so that each monitor camera device and the server 3, the server 3 and the mobile phone 1 with a TV can be monitored.
This has the effect of providing a monitor camera device that can reduce the amount of data transferred between the two.

Further, since noise removal and contour processing can be performed on the retinal prosthesis chip 502 side, the image data processor 501 only needs to have the memory 52 and the motion recognizer 53, and the image data processor 501 is simplified. There is an effect that a monitor camera device that can be implemented can be obtained.

Embodiment 4 Also, in order to configure a monitoring system that can be easily changed by anyone and can be handled by anyone,
It is necessary to devise the shape of the monitor camera device. FIG.
FIG. 1 is a structural diagram showing a configuration of such a monitor camera device. 10, reference numeral 60 denotes a mounting surface of the monitor camera device 2, 61 denotes a lens, 62 denotes an upper cover, 63 denotes a bottom plate, 64,
65 and 66 are elements constituting a wireless I / F chip, an image sensor, a power supply circuit and the like.

In this monitor camera device 2, the vertical dimension and the horizontal dimension of the mounting surface to a wall or the like are made larger than the height,
Simplifies installation on walls, etc. A sticker is attached to the mounting surface, eliminating the need for a dedicated frame and screws, which were required in the past, so that anyone can easily attach and detach. Further, FIG. 11 shows a monitor camera device in which a solar battery or a dry battery is further formed in the same housing to enable the operation of the monitor camera device by an independent power source, and that a monitoring system that can easily change the layout can be configured. FIG. In FIG. 11, reference numeral 67 denotes the independent power source using a dry cell or a solar cell.

When configuring the monitor camera device, the imaging unit (CCD, CMOS sensor, artificial retina chip, etc.), image data processing unit, and network connection unit (wireless interface, etc.) are composed of individual devices. Instead, it is desirable to integrate them on the same semiconductor substrate to form a single chip.

Thus, it is not necessary to drive an external wiring load between devices, and a monitor camera device with lower power consumption can be configured. Further, in the manufacture of the monitor camera device, a board for wiring between devices can be omitted and the number of parts can be reduced, so that there is an effect that a monitor camera device capable of suppressing assembly costs can be obtained.

[0064]

As described above, according to the present invention, the portable terminal with a television device, the imaging control of a plurality of monitor camera devices arranged in a monitoring target area, and the portable terminal with a television device can be controlled. The server is connected to a server that performs transfer control of image data, and the portable terminal with the television device is configured to enable the situation in the monitoring target area to be monitored as necessary via the server. The mobile terminal with the device has the effect that the monitoring target area can be directly and freely monitored at low cost without the intervention of a third party.

According to the present invention, the monitor camera device arranged at a position where the wireless communication distance from the server is small captures an image of the monitor camera device arranged at a position where the wireless communication distance from the server is large. Since it is configured to include relay means for relaying various kinds of control information wirelessly transmitted and received between the image data and the server, the monitor camera device disposed at a position where the communication distance is longer is provided. It is only necessary that the image data and the various information can be transmitted and received between the monitor camera device arranged at a small position, and the power consumption required for transmission and reception as compared with the case where the image data and the various information are directly transmitted to and received from the server. There is an effect that can be reduced.

According to the present invention, since a structure is provided in which each monitor camera device and the server are wirelessly connected using a spread spectrum method, the confidentiality of information and the efficiency of use of radio wave bands are improved. Has the effect of doing

According to the present invention, since the monitor camera device having the independent power source using a dry cell or a solar cell and the power management means for controlling the power supply is provided, the wiring for the power source becomes unnecessary. In addition, rearrangement becomes easy, and there is an effect that limited energy can be effectively used.

According to the present invention, there is provided an image pre-processing unit having a noise removal / contour processing function, and performs data processing for image change detection and image data compression. Each monitor camera device is provided with an image data processing unit for selectively transmitting and receiving image data in which the magnitude of the amount of change of the image is equal to or more than a predetermined amount of change between the server and
Since the server is configured to control the transfer of the image data to the portable terminal with the television device for the image data whose magnitude of the variation is equal to or greater than the predetermined variation, the load when processing the image data in the server Has the effect of being able to reduce.

According to the present invention, since the monitor camera device provided with the artificial retinal chip having the image preprocessing unit is used, the structure for performing data processing in the monitor camera device can be simplified. is there.

According to the present invention, there is provided an image pre-processing unit which is connected to a server by a bus-like network and is provided with a noise removal / contour processing function, and performs data processing for image change detection and image data compression. Since the image data processing unit configured to selectively perform transmission and reception of image data in which the amount of change of the image is equal to or more than a predetermined amount of change between the server and the server based on the change detection result of the image, This has the effect of reducing the load when processing image data in the server.

According to the present invention, since an artificial retinal chip having an image preprocessing unit is provided, there is an effect that the configuration for performing data processing can be simplified.

According to the present invention, since the power supply management means for controlling the power supply is provided, the power consumption can be reduced.

According to the present invention, since the power supply management means for shutting off the power supply to the image pickup means at the time of standby according to the command from the server is provided, the reduction of the power consumption by the image pickup means is controlled from the server. There is an effect that can be done.

According to the present invention, since the power supply management means for intermittently supplying power to the network connection means is provided during the waiting period for waiting for the imaging command from the server, the consumption by the network connection means is provided. This has the effect of reducing power.

According to the present invention, since an independent power source using a dry cell or a solar cell is provided, electric wiring and battery replacement are not required, and rearrangement is easy, and functionality can be improved. effective.

According to the present invention, the image data captured by the other monitor camera device transmitted by the other monitor camera device to the server via the wireless communication path and the other monitor camera device are transmitted to the server. Since it is configured to include a relay unit for relaying various information for control to be transmitted and received wirelessly between the other monitor camera device,
It is sufficient that the image data and the various information can be transmitted and received between the other monitor camera device and the monitor camera device arranged between the server, and the other monitor camera device transmits and receives the image data and the various information to and from the server. There is an effect that the power consumption for performing the operation can be reduced, and each monitor camera device that is on standby can be effectively used.

According to the present invention, a network is formed by the communication paths between the monitor camera devices which sequentially connect the monitor camera devices, and image data to be captured by another monitor camera device and transmitted to the server via the network. And the relay camera relays various information for control transmitted and received by the other monitor camera device to and from the server. Therefore, the monitor camera device having the relay device is capable of relaying the server and the other monitor. When located between the camera device, the other monitor camera device does not need to secure a communication distance to the server, and the other monitor camera device performs direct transmission / reception with the server. It is possible to transmit and receive with the server with less power consumption than the power consumption of There is that effect.

According to the present invention, since an independent power supply using a dry cell or a solar cell and a power supply management means for controlling power supply are provided, wiring for the power supply becomes unnecessary and rearrangement is easy. The effect is that limited energy can be used effectively.

According to the present invention, since a wireless connection is made to the server using the spread spectrum method, there is an effect that the confidentiality of information and the use efficiency of the radio wave band are improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a monitoring system according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an operation procedure of the monitoring system according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a monitor camera device to which a function of reducing unnecessary power supply at the end of monitoring in a monitoring system according to a second embodiment of the present invention is added.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a monitor camera device that enables reduction of standby power in a monitoring system according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a waveform diagram showing operations of an interval timer and a pulse generator for maintaining a network connection function and reducing average power in the monitoring system according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a network configuration method that reduces power consumption during communication and can extend operation time in the monitoring system according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing a distribution process of image data in each monitor camera device in the monitoring system according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing a configuration of each monitor camera device in the monitoring system according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing a configuration of each monitor camera device using an artificial retinal chip in the monitoring system according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a structural diagram showing a configuration of a monitor camera device in a monitoring system according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a structural diagram showing a configuration of a monitor camera device in a monitoring system according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 mobile phone with TV (mobile terminal with television device), 2, 102, 103, 104, a, b, c monitor camera device, 3 servers, 4 networks, 22
Network connection unit (network connection means), 24
Power management unit (power management means), 25, 125 switch (power management means), 50, 50a, 50b, 50c, 5
01 image data processing unit, 51, 502a image preprocessing unit, 67 independent power supply, 502 artificial retina chip, T1, T
2, T3 relay means.

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification FI FI Theme Court ゛ (Reference) // G08B 25/04 H04L 11/00 310B (72) Inventor Kazuo Hisama 2-chome, Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo No. 3 Mitsubishi Electric Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Kenichi Tanaka 2-3-2 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Mitsui Electric Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Osamu Tai, 2-2-2 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo No. 3 Mitsubishi Electric Corporation F-term (reference) BB58 DD03 DD24 EE05 EE06 EE10 EE12 EE13 FF01 FF03 FF04 FF23 GG02 GG06 GG19 GG55 GG70 5K033 AA04 BA08 BA13 CA17 DA01 DA06 DB10 DB20 DB25 EA06 EA07 5K101 KK13 LL01 LL12 NN02 NN06 NN18 NN21 NN41 TT06

Claims (16)

[Claims] A portable terminal with a television device is connected to a server that controls image capturing of a plurality of monitor camera devices arranged in a monitoring target area and controls transfer of image data to the portable terminal with a television device. And a monitoring system that enables the situation in the monitoring target area to be monitored as necessary in the portable terminal with the television device via the server. 2. A monitor camera device located at a position where a wireless communication distance from a server is short, wherein the monitor camera device is located at a position where a wireless communication distance from the server is long and image data captured by the monitor camera device and 2. The monitoring system according to claim 1, further comprising a relay unit that relays various types of control information transmitted and received wirelessly to and from the server. 3. The monitoring system according to claim 2, wherein each monitor camera device and the server are wirelessly connected using a spread spectrum method. 4. The monitoring system according to claim 2, wherein the monitor camera device includes an independent power supply using a dry cell or a solar cell, and power supply management means for controlling power supply. 5. The network is a bus-like network in which a plurality of monitor camera devices are connected, wherein each of the monitor camera devices has an image preprocessing unit having a noise removal / contour processing function,
Performs data processing for image change detection and image data compression, and transmits / receives image data whose magnitude of the image change is equal to or greater than a predetermined change with the server based on the image change detection result. An image data processing unit that selectively performs the image data processing, wherein the server performs transfer control of the image data to the portable terminal with a television device for image data in which the magnitude of the variation is equal to or greater than a predetermined variation. The monitoring system according to claim 1. 6. The monitoring system according to claim 5, wherein the monitor camera device has an artificial retinal chip, and an image preprocessing unit is provided in the artificial retinal chip. 7. Connected to a server by a network,
In a monitor camera device for transmitting and receiving various control information and captured image data to and from the server, the network is a bus-like network to which a plurality of monitor camera devices are connected, and has a noise removal / contour processing function. An image pre-processing unit is provided, and performs data processing on image change detection and image data compression. Based on the image change detection result, the amount of change in the image with the server is determined by a predetermined amount. A monitor camera device comprising an image data processing unit for selectively transmitting and receiving image data having a change amount or more. 8. The monitor camera device according to claim 7, further comprising an artificial retinal chip having an image preprocessing unit. 9. The monitor camera device according to claim 7, further comprising a power management unit for controlling power supply. 10. The monitor camera device according to claim 9, wherein the power supply management unit cuts off power supply to the imaging unit during standby in response to a command from the server. 11. The monitor camera according to claim 9, wherein the power management means intermittently supplies power to the network connection means during a standby period in which an imaging command from the server is waited. apparatus. 12. An apparatus according to claim 7, further comprising an independent power source using a dry cell or a solar cell.
The monitor camera device according to claim 1. 13. A monitor camera device for transmitting and receiving various control information and transmitting captured image data, wherein the other monitor camera device transmits the other image data to and from the server via a wireless communication path. A monitor camera device, comprising: relay means for relaying image data captured by the monitor camera device and various control information wirelessly transmitted and received between the other monitor camera device and the server. 14. A wireless communication path with the server is a network constituted by a communication path between monitor camera apparatuses which connects the monitor camera apparatuses in sequence, and the relay means is provided by another monitor camera apparatus. 14. The monitor camera device according to claim 13, wherein image data to be captured and transmitted to a server via the network and various information for control transmitted and received by the other monitor camera device to and from the server are relayed. 15. The monitor camera device according to claim 14, further comprising an independent power supply using a dry cell or a solar cell, and power supply management means for controlling power supply. 16. A wireless connection between a server and a server is a wireless connection configuration using a spread spectrum method.
The monitor camera device according to the item.