JP2000270347A - Recorder and monitor system using the recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reproduce respective video and audio signals as a stereoscopic video image with high resolution by using a plurality of video cameras and a sound pickup microphone to supervise a supervisory range and recording simultaneously the respective signals when they detect a fault. SOLUTION: Compression means 16, 17, 18 compress signals from video cameras 10, 11 and a sound pickup microphone 12 respectively and a recording means 21 records them on a DVD 22. A reproduction means 23 reproduces left and right eye video signals on the DVD 22 and an expansion means expands the reproduced signals, and a stereoscopic display monitor 29 displays a stereoscopic video image through a liquid crystal display shutter 28. The compressed main video signal and sub video signal are alternately recorded as an interleave unit with nearly the same size of a group of picture GOP in compliance with the MPEG standards.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a recording apparatus and a monitoring system using the recording apparatus.
D (Digital Versatile Disc) A recording apparatus for recording information, particularly a stereoscopic image, on a recording medium such as a high-density optical disk capable of recording information such as video and audio typified by video at a high density. Using multiple surveillance cameras,
The present invention relates to a monitoring system capable of recording video information from a plurality of monitoring cameras as a stereoscopic video when a change in video information or audio information is detected.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art There is a conventional surveillance camera system in which a video signal from a surveillance camera is recorded on a VTR or the like when an abnormality is detected in an image by the surveillance camera. Therefore, since the viewing angle of the monitoring camera is set wide, when the VTR or the like is later reproduced to check for abnormalities, the subject is small due to the wide-angle image and it is often difficult to check.

In order to solve these problems, a surveillance camera system calculates a difference between video signals from surveillance cameras, detects an abnormality in a monitoring range, and when it is determined that an abnormality has occurred, monitors the abnormality occurrence portion. (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-21770) to turn up and zoom up to record a video signal from a surveillance camera on a VTR or the like.
A wide area is monitored by a plurality of surveillance cameras, and each image taken by the plurality of surveillance cameras is recorded in a recording means such as a VTR. There is a technique (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 9-116794) of recording all the recording means when a motion is detected from a video signal obtained by the apparatus. In a surveillance camera system, the role of a recording / reproducing device is extremely large, and various types of stereoscopic video recording / reproducing devices applicable to such a surveillance camera system have been proposed. First, with regard to display, polarizing glasses, liquid crystal shutter glasses, or a lenticular plate is arranged in front of the display screen so that the right eye and the left eye respectively see the right eye image and the left eye image, respectively. And other methods have been considered.

[0004] For stereoscopic display, video signals are usually required for two images, a right-eye image and a left-eye image. When the at least two video signals are broadcast or recorded on a recording medium, the signal data amount becomes a problem. Therefore, in order to reduce the signal amount, various compression methods are used as is well known. M for video signal compression for stereoscopic display
Using PEG (Moving Picture Experts Group) standard,
As a conventional example relating to a method for recording and reproducing these compressed video signals on a DVD disk, a main video signal is stored in a main video stream, and at the same time, a private bit stream, an optional area such as a user area is used. Technology for recording auxiliary data for reproducing a stereoscopic video, or recording a video signal for forming a stereoscopic video on each layer in a recording medium having multiple recording layers (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-327041), A technique of calculating image differences between a plurality of image information obtained by a plurality of image pickup means and obtaining compressed image difference information, and recording one image information and image difference information obtained by the image pickup means in a VTR (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. No. -30445).

[0005]

However, as in the above-described conventional monitoring system, if it is determined that an abnormality has occurred, if the camera is rotated and zoomed in on the portion where the abnormality has occurred and recorded, for example, the object as the subject can be obtained. Although the image of the intruder is small and it is not difficult to confirm, the generation of motor sounds for turning the surveillance camera and motor sounds for zooming up is unavoidable and may be noticed by the intruder, There is a risk that the surveillance camera may be visually recognized as having turned. In addition, when a recording means such as a VTR is provided for each of a plurality of surveillance cameras, it is difficult to obtain a stereoscopic image, the system becomes large, and the labor required for maintenance is not negligible.

Further, as in the above-described conventional recording / reproducing apparatus for recording / reproducing a stereoscopic video, auxiliary data for reproducing the stereoscopic video can be recorded in an optional area of the DVD.
The method of recording a video signal that forms a stereoscopic video on each of the recording layers is certainly excellent in compatibility with conventional DVDs, but it has sufficient data areas that can be used arbitrarily for high-quality stereoscopic video. Difficult to secure,
In order to simultaneously reproduce the left-eye video signal and the right-eye video signal that can prevent flicker, a memory (approximately 5 Mbits) equivalent to the track buffer is required for the left and right eyes. For simultaneous reproduction of two layers, two systems of pickup mechanisms are required, and there is a problem that the system cost is increased.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances. When an abnormal condition is determined, a three-dimensional image is recorded by two surveillance cameras without generating a motor sound or the like of the surveillance camera. A device that enables the intruder to be recognized as a subject to be recognized as a stereoscopic image close to the actual image, and further enhances the resolution of the subject from the two images so that confirmation can be sufficiently performed even if the subject is small. It is. In addition, with respect to the recording device, at least the main video signal and the sub video signal are alternately recorded for each interleave unit, and the size of the interleave unit is limited to about 1 GOP, so that compatibility with the conventional DVD is minimized. It is intended to enable recording and reproduction of stereoscopic video with a small memory and a small number of additional circuits while maintaining the same.

[0008]

According to the first aspect of the present invention,
A compressed video signal is the minimum unit that can be logically accessed. One or more GOPs (Group Of Pictures)
A recording apparatus for recording on a recording medium by dividing into a first data group including: a second data group from each of the first data groups, and dividing the second data group into a plurality of data groups. Means for forming a third data group such that the first data group is completed, and the size of the third data group is determined by the GO
Means for recording the main video signal and the sub-video signal for the same subject alternately for each of the third data groups, with the size being substantially the same as the size of P.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the recording apparatus of the first aspect, the first I picture in the GOP corresponding to the main video signal and the sub video signal is an image at substantially the same time. The present invention relates to a recording apparatus characterized by the following.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the recording apparatus according to the first or second aspect, the first data group is a D group.
A VOBU (Video Object Unit) in a VD (Digital Versatile Disc) recording format.
The data group is a cell in the DVD recording format, and the third data group is an interleave unit in the DVD recording format.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the recording apparatus according to the third aspect, the interleave unit stores the stuffing data for making the boundary of the interleave unit coincide with the boundary of the sector on the recording medium.
The present invention relates to a recording device characterized by being added to an OP.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the recording apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the sub-video signal is depth information for reproducing a stereoscopic video or a compound-eye video signal. And a recording device.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the recording apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the sub-video signal is an auxiliary video signal for reproducing a fine image. About.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the recording apparatus according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, identification data for identifying that the main video signal and the sub video signal are recorded is transmitted. The present invention relates to a recording device for recording.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the recording apparatus according to any one of the first to seventh aspects, identification data for identifying the main video signal and the sub video signal is recorded. To a recording device.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an input means for inputting a plurality of video signals including at least a main video signal and a sub-video signal, and an audio signal, and the signal input by the input means is recorded on a recording medium. 9. The recording device according to claim 1, further comprising: a recording unit configured to detect a change in a signal input by the input unit, wherein the detection unit detects a change in the signal, The present invention relates to a monitoring system that records a plurality of video signals and audio signals input by input means substantially simultaneously on the recording medium.

[0017]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a monitoring system according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 shows an example of the configuration of a recording / reproducing apparatus according to the present invention, which includes a video camera 10, a video camera 11, a sound collecting microphone 12, and an input unit 1.
3, voice input means 14, detection means 15, compression means 16,
Compression means 17, compression means 18, compression ratio control means 19, provision means 20, recording means 21, disk 22, reproduction means 2
3, an expansion unit 24, a search unit 25, and a display control unit 26. Here, DVD is used as a recording medium.
(Digital Versatile Disc) (especially DVD-RAM that can record and reproduce, or DV that can record only once
Although an example in which recording and reproduction are performed using DR is shown, the recording medium is not limited to a DVD, but may be a recording / reproducing hard disk, an optical disk, a memory card, a tape medium represented by a VTR, or the like. There may be. The mixing circuit 27, the liquid crystal shutter 28, and the stereoscopic display monitor 29
4 shows an example of the configuration of a monitor when viewing a recorded stereoscopic video. Here, the left-eye video signal and the right-eye video signal are switched for each field by the mixing circuit 27 and supplied to the three-dimensional display monitor 29, and at the same time, the liquid crystal shutter 28 selects the left eye and the right eye and transmits them alternately. The example in the case of is shown. In this case, a head-mounted display that simultaneously displays a left-eye video signal and a right-eye video signal may be used.

Although three or more video cameras for surveillance may be installed, here, for three-dimensional display, or
Minimum 2 required to substantially increase the resolution of the subject
The case where a table (video camera 10 and video camera 11) is installed is shown. In addition to video signals, audio, infrared,
There is a case where abnormalities are monitored by inputting radio waves or the like. In this case, only sound is illustrated, and a sound collecting microphone 12 for inputting a sound signal is prepared. A plurality of sound collecting microphones 12 may be provided.

The video camera 10 and the video camera 11
In order to record a video when a change or abnormality occurs in the monitoring range as a stereoscopic video, it is necessary to keep the same distance as the distance between the left and right eyes of a human. However, this is not the case when the resolution of the image is to be substantially increased or when images from different angles such as the front and side of the criminal image are required.

The main video signal is picked up by the video camera 10 as a left-eye video signal, this is called a first surveillance camera, and the sub-video signal is used as a right-eye video signal by the video camera 1.
An image is taken at 1, and this is called a second surveillance camera.

The first surveillance camera is normally turned on, and the second surveillance camera is normally turned off. The left-eye video signal from the first monitoring camera 10 is input to the input unit 13. At the same time, a sound signal from the sound collecting microphone 12 is also input to the sound input means 14. In this case, the detecting means 15 detects a change in a signal from the first monitoring camera 10 and the signal from the sound collecting microphone 12.

As a method for detecting a change in the video signal input from the first surveillance camera 10, the video data is stored in a frame memory or the like and the input video data is compared with the video data delayed by one frame. The difference is calculated, the accumulation of the difference amount is further calculated, and the calculation result is output.The representative point of the predetermined frame and the representative point of the previous frame are obtained. A motion vector between frames is detected based on the difference between the positions of the representative points of the frames, and the detected motion vector is output. , It is detected whether there is a coded portion representing a difference obtained by performing inter-frame prediction, and if there is a predetermined number of frames, there is a motion. A method in which detection can be used.

As a method of detecting a change in the audio signal from the sound collecting microphone 12, the input audio data is detected, the level is detected, the level is compared at intervals of each frame, and a difference is generated. In this case, a method of determining that the audio level has changed can be used.

The video signal input from the first surveillance camera 10 is compressed by a compression means 16 so that long-time recording is possible.
To compress the video signal according to the MPEG standard. The audio signal input from the sound collecting microphone 12 passes through the audio input means 14 and is compressed by the compression means 18 in the Dolby AC-3 system.
Some of them conform to the DVD standard, but other methods may be used.

These compressed signals are stored in the recording means 21
And recorded on a disk 22 as a recording medium. Normally, the recording means 21 includes a servo circuit for controlling rotation of the disk 22, a modulation circuit, a pickup unit,
A microcomputer for controlling the entire apparatus is included.

The video signal and audio signal data recorded on the disk 22 are read from the disk 22 by the reproducing means 23. The reproducing means 23 also has a disk 22
It includes a servo circuit for controlling the rotation of the device, a demodulation circuit, a pickup unit, and a microcomputer for controlling the entire device.
The signal read from the reproducing means 23 expands the signal decoded by MPEG and compressed at the time of recording by the expansion means 24. The signal expanded by the expansion unit 24 is supplied to the mixing circuit 27, the liquid crystal shutter 28, and the stereoscopic display monitor 29 as a video signal and an audio signal. If the video signal obtained from the expansion means 24 is only the main video signal, the liquid crystal shutter 28 is left open and the stereoscopic display monitor 2
9 operates as a normal monitor.

A video camera is provided as the first monitoring camera 10, a video camera is provided as the second monitoring camera 11, a sound collecting microphone 12 for voice recording, and the device are installed, for example, to monitor an office at night. As the signal input in the initial state, the first surveillance camera 10 and the sound collecting microphone 12 are enabled. The power of the second monitoring camera 11 is off. As described above, the detection unit 15 monitors the changes of the signals of the first monitoring camera 10 and the sound collection microphone 12 input from the input unit 13, and the compression unit 16 and the compression unit 1
7, a disk 22 by the compression means 18 and the recording means 21
The video signal and the audio signal that have been MPEG-compressed are recorded in the MPEG-2.

When an intruder enters the office, the first surveillance camera 10 captures an image of the intruder, and the detecting means 15 detects difference information and motion vectors of the intruder image with respect to the image signal of the office without a shadow. Is detected. Alternatively, the sound generated by the intruder is captured by the sound collecting microphone 12, and a sound level difference between frames is detected. When the detection means 15 detects a change or abnormality in the video signal or the audio signal of the first monitoring camera in this way, the power of the second monitoring camera 11 is turned on, and the video signal from the second monitoring camera 11 is input. The input is made to the means 13. The first surveillance camera 10 and the second surveillance camera 11 are installed at the same distance as the distance between the left and right eyes of a human so as to supply a left-eye video signal and a right-eye video signal, respectively. First surveillance camera 10, Second surveillance camera 1
Even if a video camera that is a third surveillance camera that captures images from different angles besides 1 is installed,
When the detecting means 15 detects a change or an abnormality in the video signal or the audio signal of the surveillance camera, the first surveillance camera 10,
The power of the surveillance cameras other than the second surveillance camera 11 is turned on, and video signals from those surveillance cameras are input to the input unit 1.
3 can be input. It is possible to do the same for audio signals.

Further, when the detecting means 15 detects a change or an abnormality in the video signal or the audio signal of the first surveillance camera 10,
The video signal input from the second surveillance camera 11 to the input unit 13 is MPEG-compressed by the compression unit 17, and is recorded by the recording unit 21.
To supply. The recording means 21 records only the signals from the compression means 16 and the compression means 18 on the disk 22 until the detection means 15 detects a change in the signal.
When 5 detects a change in the signal, the recording means 21 starts recording the signal from the compression means 17 on the disk 22 simultaneously with the signals from the compression means 16 and 18. The ability to simultaneously record two video signals for stereoscopic video on the same recording medium disk 22 is important for synchronizing and displaying the two video signals for stereoscopic video recorded.

When the video signal from the first monitoring camera 10 and the second monitoring camera 11 and the audio signal from the sound collecting microphone 12 are simultaneously recorded, the first detection means 15 detects
Information indicating changes in the video signal and audio signal of the surveillance camera,
For example, the detection of a motion vector in the video signal of the first monitoring camera and the detection of a level difference between frames in the audio signal are recorded on the disk 22 as additional information in association with the video signal and the audio signal. Alternatively, information indicating that the stereoscopic video is simultaneously recorded is recorded on the disk 22 as additional information in association with the video signal and the audio signal.
It is an effective method to add and record information indicating that a stereoscopic video is simultaneously recorded, since compatibility can be maintained when DVDs capable of reproducing stereoscopic video have become widespread.

As another method of simultaneously recording a stereoscopic video on a DVD, if the main video signal and the sub-video signal are alternately recorded for each interleave unit, the stereoscopic video can be recorded while maintaining the compatibility with the conventional DVD. Reproduction becomes possible. An interleave unit is an interleave unit of a length that does not impair the continuity of the output signal even when the read signal from the disk is temporarily stopped (that is, the track is jumped by the pickup only between one interleave unit). Even if the input signal to the buffer is interrupted, the output signal from the track buffer is decomposed into an interleaved unit having a length that can be continuously output and recorded, thereby enabling seamless continuous reproduction. .

Next, a recording / reproducing apparatus capable of alternately recording a main video signal and a sub video signal for each interleave unit using a DVD will be described with reference to FIGS.

First, an outline of a recording format of video information and audio information on a DVD will be described with reference to FIGS. In DVD, MPEG is used for video compression.
In this case, a standard is used. In this case, a method is basically adopted in which a screen is divided into macroblocks, and motion that changes in a screen (frame) is detected, predicted and corrected for each macroblock. FIG. 4 shows a GOP (Gr.
oupe Of Picture). The entire screen
Assuming that there are many chances to change to another screen, an original picture (I picture: denoted by I in FIG. 4) that is not compressed for each screen (frame) and a screen predicted from the I picture (P
A picture (indicated as P in FIG. 4) is inserted, and the screen (frame) between them is predicted and inserted from the preceding and following I and P pictures between the frames. For example, an I picture is every 6 to 16 screens (frames), and a P picture is
Insert every 6 screens (frames). FIG. 4 shows a case where an I picture is inserted every 16 frames and a P picture is inserted every 3 frames. Arrows indicate the relationship created by prediction. A group of compressed video signals composed of these frames is called a GOP.

Next, the physical and logical structure of the DVD will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6.
VOBS (Video O) that constitutes TS (Video Title Set)
bject Set) includes a plurality of VOBs (Video
Object), and the VOB is composed of a plurality of cells (Cells).
OBUs (Video Object Units) are assembled. Each VOBU (Video Object Unit) includes a navigation data packet (NV_PCK), a video data packet (V_PCK), an audio data packet (A_PCK), and a sub-picture data packet (S
P_PCK) and the like. Here, the video data packet (V_PCK) records video data as video information, the audio data packet (A_PCK) records audio data as audio information, and the sub-picture data packet (SP_PCK).
PCK) records data for a stereoscopic image as a sub-image and graphic data data such as characters and figures, and the navigation data packet (NV_PCK) records search information and data related to display control. One or a plurality of GOPs (Group of Picture) as shown in FIG. 4 are recorded in the video data packet (V_PCK), and each video data packet (V_PCK) is recorded.
K), an audio data packet (A_PCK) and a sub-picture data packet (SP_PCK) are arranged.

Further, although not shown, a plurality of VOBS
VTS (Video Title S)
et) and recorded on the DVD. In the control data, information such as PGCI (Programm Chain Information) related to a program chain (PGC: Programmable Chain) which is a logical division combining a plurality of cells is recorded.

In the physical configuration of the DVD shown in FIG. 5, a case where a plurality of cells are recorded in the order of ID numbers (IDN) has been described. However, a cell which is actually a group of a plurality of VOBUs is shown in FIG. As shown in (1), there is a case where the data is divided into a plurality of interleave units (ILVUs) and recorded. For example, when reproducing a DVD, a cell in which video data to be skipped is recorded is divided into ILVUs 1 to 3 of path 2 (path 2) in FIG. 6, and a cell in which the video data to be reproduced is recorded is in path 1.
(Path1) divided into ILVU1-3 and stored.
And pass 2 are recorded in a state where each ILVU is alternately interleaved. At the time of reproduction, the pickup extracts presentation data (Presentation data) as information related to display control from the navigation data packet (NV_PCK).
n Data) is read out, and an instruction is given to perform playback in which path 2 (path 2) is skipped.
Jump to LVU1 and read ILVU1 of pass1. Subsequently, the video data read from the ILVU1 of pass 1 is stored in the track buffer, and the ILVU2 of pass 2 is stored.
Is read, and while the input signal is interrupted, the ILVU1 of pass 1 is read from the track buffer and reproduced. As described above, an interleave unit having a length that does not impair the continuity of the output signal even when the input signal is temporarily stopped (that is, the pickup jumps only during one interleave unit, so that the input to the track buffer is reduced). Even if the signal is interrupted, the output signal from the track buffer is decomposed into interleaved units each having a length that can be output continuously, thereby enabling seamless continuous reproduction.

The interleave unit ILVU
Are formed so as to be completed in one VOB, and one interleave unit ILVU does not straddle a plurality of adjacent VOBs.
Regarding the relationship with OBU, one or more VOBUs are included in one interleave unit ILVU, and one VOB is included in one interleave unit ILVU.
U is configured to be completed, and one VOBU is not divided and straddles a plurality of interleave units ILVU.

FIG. 2 shows an example of the configuration of a DVD reproducing apparatus to which the present invention is applied.
Error correction unit 31, switching means 32, storage means 33, 3
4, MPEG decoding means 35, 36, synchronization means 3
7, NTSC encoders 38 and 39. Left eye monitor 40, Right eye monitor 41, Mixer 4
2. The liquid crystal shutter 43 and the stereoscopic video monitor 44 are for actually displaying the stereoscopic video signal reproduced by the DVD reproducing apparatus of the present invention, and an appropriate one may be selected depending on the situation. The left-eye monitor 40 and the right-eye monitor 41 are display devices assuming a head-mounted display, and include a liquid crystal shutter 43 and a stereoscopic video monitor 44.
Displays the image displayed on the stereoscopic image monitor 44 by the liquid crystal shutter 4
3 shows a display device viewed through 3;

The information recorded on the DVD disk 30 is read by a pickup, and the read information is supplied to a demodulation unit / error correction unit 31. The data demodulated and error-corrected by the demodulation / error correction unit 31 are supplied to the switching unit 32. At this time, for example, identification data for identifying that a stereoscopic video signal is recorded, and Since the main video signal data is identified and recorded as the left-eye video signal data (L) and the sub-video signal data as the right-eye video signal data (R), the recorded identification data is also reproduced at the same time. The operation mode of the switching means 32 is determined by the identification signal indicating whether the signal is compatible with stereoscopic video. That is, when the reproduced signal is not compatible with stereoscopic video, the switching unit 32 is connected to, for example, the storage unit 33 and operates as a normal DVD. In the case where the reproduced signal is compatible with stereoscopic video, although not shown in the figure, a servo circuit or the like provided in the DVD is controlled to reproduce the disk at double speed. This is because the final video signal for both the left and right eyes is displayed at the same field cycle as a normal NTSC signal of 60 Hz, and a high-quality stereoscopic video with little flicker is obtained.

Further, the switching means 32 alternately supplies the data string from the demodulation unit / error correction unit 31 to the storage means 33 and 34 in accordance with the L / R identification data. Since the length of the data string at this time is an interleave unit having a length of about 1 GOP, the storage capacity required for the storage means 33 and 34 may be 2 Mbits, respectively. VOBU contains only one GOP). This is because 1 GOP is
As shown in FIG. 7, normally, the image data is composed of 16 pieces of image data having different compression ratios, and their data capacity is 32K.
This is due to the fact that it is about a byte. The storage means 33 temporarily stores an MPEG-compressed data stream for the left eye, which is alternately supplied for each interleave unit,
The decoding means 35 is supplied with an uninterrupted continuous left-eye MPEG-compressed data string.

Similarly, the decoding means 36 has the right eye M
The PEG-compressed data string is supplied by the storage unit 34. At this time, since the compression ratios of the data of the L / R screens are not always the same, the MPEs by the decoding means 35 and 36 are used.
The G decode time will be different. That is, the decoded video signals from the decoding means 35 and 36 are correctly demodulated on the time axis, but are not always synchronized as the L / R video signals. Therefore, between the decoding means 35 and the decoding means 36, the synchronization means 3
7, it is necessary to synchronize the video signals on the output side of the decoding means 35 and the decoding means 36.

The decoding means 35, 36
The decoded signals are respectively transmitted to the NTSC encoder 3
8 and 39, and converted into an NTSC signal that can be displayed on a general television receiver or monitor. of course,
The NTSC encoders 38 and 39 are not limited to NTSC encoders, but may be PAL according to the destination of products.
It is necessary to select an appropriate one such as an encoder for use.

The left-eye and right-eye video signals thus obtained are supplied to, for example, a left-eye monitor 40 and a right-eye monitor 41 constituting a head-mounted display.
Alternatively, a stereoscopic video can be enjoyed by mixing the L / R video signals and supplying them as a 120 Hz video signal to the stereoscopic video monitor 44 and viewing through the liquid crystal shutter 43.

FIG. 3 shows an example of the configuration of a DVD recording apparatus to which the present invention is applied. The left-eye image pickup device 45, the right-eye image pickup device 46, the MPEG compression means 47 and 48, the mixer 49, and the recording section 50 and a disk 30. Subject 5
Reference numeral 1 denotes an image captured by the left-eye image capturing device 45 and the right-eye image capturing device 46, and each of the MPEs as left-eye and right-eye video signals.
G compression means 47 and 48 are supplied. At this time, the MPE
The G compression means 47 and 48 need to perform an imaging operation synchronized with a clock signal of about 90 KHz. This is because, in order to maintain the synchronous relationship between the left-eye video signal and the right-eye video signal at the time of reproduction, when the MPEG compression means 47 and 48 perform MPEG encoding, the first I-picture of the GOP has almost the same time. This is because it is necessary to perform a synchronized operation like an image.

At this time, by setting the size of the interleave unit to be about the same size as one GOP on average, a track buffer (shown as storage means 33 and 34 in FIG. 2) required for reproduction is provided. The capacity can be reduced to about 2 Mbits each. Furthermore, the size of the interleave unit is 1G
If the OP and the stuffing data are made to always coincide with the sector boundaries when recorded on the disk, it is possible to easily restore the image stably during special reproduction. Since the size of the interleave unit is kept constant by the stuffing data as empty data in accordance with the size of one GOP, the compression ratio of the data decreases, but it is necessary to secure image resilience during special reproduction. Is valid.

The MPEG-compressed video signal data stream for the left and right eyes is supplied to a mixer 49, where the L / R MPEG data stream is switched for each interleave unit. An identification signal of R and identification data for identifying that the stereoscopic video signal is recorded are added to create a stereoscopic video data string compressed by MPEG,
This is recorded on the disk 30 by the recording unit 50. In this way, main video signal data and sub video signal data for stereoscopic video reproduction can be recorded alternately for each interleave unit.

Although the video signals for forming the stereoscopic video have been described as the left-eye video signal and the right-eye video signal, the main video signal and the sub-video signal are not limited to these. It may be data indicating depth information or compound eye video information.

As another method for simultaneously recording a stereoscopic video on a DVD, a main video signal is recorded as usual in a main video stream of the DVD, and a sub-video can be arbitrarily set in a DVD standard or a user area according to the DVD standard. What is necessary is just to record a signal. Alternatively, since a method for recording multi-angle data is defined for DVD, if the sub-picture signal is recorded as multi-angle data, the DVD
A monitoring recording / reproducing apparatus having high compatibility with the above can be configured.

The recording / reproducing apparatus records video signals, audio signals, change information, and the like on the disk 22, and the recorded information is read out by the reproducing means 23. Information indicating a change in the video signal or audio signal of the first surveillance camera, or information indicating that a stereoscopic video is being recorded simultaneously, is detected by the search unit 25 from the data read from the playback unit 23. (FIG. 1).

In the monitoring system as shown in FIG.
A search mode for specifying a point in time at which a change or the like has occurred is provided. In this search mode, the disk 22 is searched at high speed, and the change information detected by the search means 25 is displayed by the display control means 26 as, for example, a list of abnormality occurrence status. Let it. FIG. 7 shows an example of the abnormality occurrence status list displayed by the display control means 26. When the checker instructs the search means 25 to search for a video at a specific time by looking at the list, the search means 25 switches the playback mode of the playback means 23 and searches the disk 22 at high speed. The information indicating the change of the video signal and the audio signal of the first surveillance camera recorded in association with the video signal, which is instructed by the search means 25 again, or that the stereoscopic video is simultaneously recorded. The track on which the indicated information is recorded is searched for, and the reproducing means 23 is switched from the high-speed search mode to the three-dimensional reproduction mode. The signal reproduced by the reproduction unit 23 is subjected to MPGE decoding by the expansion unit 24, and the stereoscopic video signal recorded from the first monitoring camera 10, the second monitoring camera 11, and the sound collecting microphone 12 is reproduced.

To view these stereoscopic video signals and audio signals, a mixing circuit 27, a liquid crystal shutter 28 and a stereoscopic display monitor 29 may be used. In this way, the image at the time of occurrence of the abnormality can be recognized in a stereoscopic manner,
Since the video signals from the two surveillance cameras can be used, the resolution of the subject can be substantially increased.

Here, the reason why the resolution of an image is substantially increased by using video signals from the first monitoring camera and the second monitoring camera will be described. When shooting with one camera, the missing information between pixels is
It can only be compensated by arithmetic processing inferred from pixels and pixel data. On the other hand, in the case of shooting with a stereoscopic video or with a plurality of cameras, missing data between pixels in one camera can be supplemented with pixel data of another camera. That is, in the image signals of the A camera and the B camera, data representing the same place of the subject is extracted, and for example, missing data between the pixels of the A camera is extracted from the pixel data of the A camera and the B camera. It is possible to infer and calculate from the data and the pixel data captured by the B camera having a slightly different angle from the data to complement the data.

FIG. 8 shows an example of synthesizing the image, and FIG. 9 shows an example of a flowchart of the image synthesizing method. V1 to V in FIG.
8, H1 to H9 indicate the numbers of the pixels in the vertical and horizontal directions, respectively. S1 to S9 in FIG. 9 indicate each processing step. It is assumed that the A camera supplies a left-eye video signal and the B camera supplies a right-eye video signal. The difference data between the left-eye video signal and the right-eye video signal is calculated (S2). The distribution of the difference data is obtained by this calculation, and based on this, the direction and magnitude of the shift between the left-eye video signal and the right-eye video signal are obtained by a shift direction vector calculation (S3). For example, in the case of the image of FIG. 8, from the pixels of V7 and H3, the pixels of V6 and H3 of the video signal for the left eye, and the pixels of V6 and H4 of the video signal for the right eye, the neighboring pixels are V7, H3 of signal → V of video signal for right eye
6, H4, and V5 and H5 of the right-eye video signal are determined (S4). Thus, the H of the left-eye video signal is on the right side of the left-eye video signal H3, V1 to V8.
3, image data is synthesized in the direction of inserting V1 to V8 (S5). At this time, the shift direction differs depending on the position of the screen, and the insertion direction may be different. The same processing can be performed even when the image is shifted vertically. Further, difference data between the combined image and the left-eye video signal or the right-eye video signal is calculated (S6). If the difference data is abnormally large, there is an abnormality in the shifted direction. (S7), if the shift direction is corrected and the synthesis process is performed again, the accuracy of the synthesized image can be further improved.

As can be seen from the video signal with the increased resolution shown in FIG. 8, in this case, since the resolution in the horizontal direction is doubled, the video of the subject (the letter “A” in FIG. 8) Is doubled in the horizontal direction. Similar processing can be performed in the vertical direction. Further, by selecting an image range in which the processing for increasing the resolution is performed in accordance with the detection of the movement of the subject, it is possible to increase the resolution of the subject while tracking the subject. Since the pixels of the video signal for the right eye captured by the B camera are not based on inference or arithmetic processing, the complementing processing can substantially increase the resolution of the image. Of course, the complementary data can be made closer to the entity by using the normal complementing process. Although the process has been described as increasing the resolution of the luminance signal, a similar process can be performed on the chroma signal.

When the reproduction of the stereoscopic video portion is completed or the like, information indicating a change in the video signal or audio signal of the first surveillance camera or information indicating that the stereoscopic video is recorded simultaneously is retrieved by the search means 25. When the detection is stopped, the reproduction unit 23 is set to the normal reproduction mode for reproducing only the main video signal and the audio signal. That is, a portion without any abnormality is viewed in the normal reproduction mode having a low resolution. Furthermore, when recording video and audio, the compression ratio control means 19
In particular, the data compression ratios of the compression means 16 and 17 are controlled to enable long-time recording, and
It is possible to obtain a high-resolution image at the time of an abnormality.

That is, the change level detected by the detecting means 15 between the video signal of the video camera 10 as the first surveillance camera and the audio signal of the sound collecting microphone 12 inputted to the input means 13 is a predetermined level. In the following cases, for example, when the magnitude of a motion vector between frames in a video signal and the audio level difference between frames in an audio signal are equal to or less than a predetermined level, the data compression ratio of the compression unit 16 is reduced by the compression ratio control unit 19. This is greatly increased, and this is used by the recording means 21 for long-time recording.

A method of greatly increasing the data compression rate in the MPEG standard is to reduce the appearance frequency of I pictures and P pictures and increase the appearance frequency of B pictures at the time of encoding. In data recorded on a normal DVD, I-pictures are inserted every 16 frames and P-pictures are inserted every 3 frames. This takes into account random access, error recovery performance, delay in decoding processing, and the like. In most recording / reproducing devices for monitoring, such as monitoring of offices at night, etc., there is no motion in the video, and the amount of delay in the decoding process may be sacrificed. Extensive use of pictures is effective in improving the compression ratio. When controlling the compression ratio of a recording signal, information indicating a change in a video signal or an audio signal or information indicating that simultaneous recording is performed as a stereoscopic video is recorded on the disk 22 in association with the signal. The search is performed in the same manner as described above.

When the monitoring center is to be monitored at night from the monitoring center via a telephone line or the like, the request from the monitoring center is received by the providing means 20 and the compression means 1
6. The signal compressed by the compression means 17 and the compression means 18 can be transmitted to the monitoring center. The providing means 20 typically includes a digital interface and a modem. Also in this case, the monitoring center can view a normal image with a high compression ratio when there is no abnormality in the office, and a stereoscopic image with a high resolution when there is an abnormality.

[0059]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, a compressed video signal is a logically accessible minimum unit,
Alternatively, in a recording apparatus for recording on a recording medium by dividing the data into a first data group including a plurality of GOPs, a second data group is formed from each of the first data groups, and the second data group is divided into a plurality of data groups. Then 1
Means for forming a third data group such that the first data group is completed, and setting the size of the third data group to be substantially the same as the size of the GOP.
For each data group, means for alternately recording the main video signal and the sub-video signal for the same subject are provided, so that the memory capacity of the track buffer constituting the recording device can be reduced, or the video signal for the left eye and The memory capacity for simultaneous reproduction of the right-eye video signal can be reduced, or a pickup mechanism for simultaneous reproduction of a dual-layer disc is not required. It is possible to record a high-quality stereoscopic video with little flicker in a memory or the like.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the GOP corresponding to the main video signal and the sub video signal is provided.
Are the images at substantially the same time,
Since there is no recording time difference between the left-eye video signal and the right-eye video signal, a high-quality stereoscopic video with little flicker can be recorded with a small number of additional circuits and memories.

According to the invention of claim 3, claim 1 or 2
Since the first data group is a VOBU, the second data group is a cell, and the third data group is an interleave unit ILVU, the main video data and the sub video data for stereoscopic video reproduction are interleaved. By recording alternately for each unit, it is possible to record a stereoscopic video with a small number of additional circuits and a memory while maintaining compatibility with a conventional DVD recording device.

According to the invention of claim 4, in the invention of claim 3, since the boundaries of the sectors on the DVD always coincide with the boundaries of the interleave units, a high-quality stereoscopic video can be recorded with a small number of additional circuits and memories. It is possible to stably restore an image during special reproduction.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, in any one of the first to fourth aspects of the present invention, a signal for forming a stereoscopic video is changed to a left-eye video signal and a right-eye video signal. Since the video signal is depth information for stereoscopic video reproduction and a compound-eye video signal, the range of selection is widened, and it is possible to select and record optimal information depending on the type of video.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, in any one of the first to fourth aspects of the present invention, the auxiliary video signal is an auxiliary video signal for reproducing a fine image. Can be recorded.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in any one of the first to sixth aspects, identification data for identifying that a main video signal and a sub video signal are recorded is recorded. According to the eighth aspect, in any one of the first to seventh aspects, the identification data for identifying the main video signal and the sub video signal is recorded. Main video signal data and sub video signal data can be recorded alternately.

According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, there are provided an input means for inputting a plurality of video signals including a main video signal and a sub-video signal and an audio signal, and a detecting means for detecting a change in these signals. When the means detects a change in the signal input to the input means, a plurality of video signals and audio signals are recorded substantially simultaneously on the recording medium of the recording apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8, so that the main video signal Surveillance cameras, microphones, etc. that obtain multiple video and audio signals, including sub-video signals, and the like. When confirming the recorded content, it is possible to see the change or abnormality of the subject as a stereoscopic image, for example, while being able to recognize the criminal image more realistically and stereoscopically,
Since video signals from a plurality of surveillance cameras can be used, the resolution of the subject can be substantially increased. Therefore, it is possible to provide an effective means for determining a criminal image.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a recording / reproducing apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a reproducing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the recording apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a GOP (Group Of Picture).

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a VOBS (Video Object Set).

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of an ILVU (Interleaved Unit).

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a display example of an abnormality occurrence status list of the monitoring system according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating the principle of an image synthesizing method for substantially increasing the resolution of an image.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a process of an image combining method for substantially increasing the resolution of an image.

[Explanation of symbols]

10, 11 ... video camera, 12 ... sound collecting microphone, 13 ...
Input means, 14 ... voice input means, 15 ... detection means, 1
6, 17, 18: compression means, 19: compression ratio control means, 2
0: providing means, 21: recording means, 22: disk, 23
... Reproduction means, 24 ... Decompression means, 25 ... Search means, 26 ...
Display control means, 27: mixing circuit, 28: liquid crystal shutter,
29: 3D display monitor, 30: DVD disk, 31 ...
Demodulation section / error correction section, 32 ... switching means, 33, 34 ...
Storage means, 35, 36 decoding means, 37 synchronization means, 38, 39 NTSC encoder, 40 monitor for left eye, 41 monitor for right eye, 42 mixer, 43 liquid crystal shutter, 44 Stereoscopic video monitor, 45: left eye imager, 46: right eye imager, 47, 48: MPEG compression means, 49: mixer, 50: recording unit, 51: subject.

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Tamotsu Aoki 22-22, Nagaike-cho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, F-term in Sharp Corporation (reference) 5C053 FA11 FA24 GB06 GB37 HA29 JA24 LA01 LA06 LA14 5C054 AA02 CC02 DA08 EA01 EA05 EA07 FC11 FC12 FD01 FD02 FE21 FF01 GA02 GB01 GB02 GD03 HA18 5C061 AA01 AA03 AA11 AB04 AB08 AB10 AB12 AB17 AB21 AB24 5C084 AA02 AA07 AA13 BB04 BB31 DD02 DD11 GG52

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A compressed video signal is a logically accessible minimum unit, and includes one or more GOPs (Grous).
p Of Picture)
A recording apparatus for recording on a recording medium, wherein a second data group is formed from each of the first data groups, and the second data group is divided into a plurality of pieces to complete one first data group. Means for forming such a third data group; and setting the size of the third data group to be substantially the same as the size of the GOP, and forming a main video signal and a sub video signal for the same subject for each of the third data groups. Recording means for alternately recording. 2. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a leading I picture in a GOP corresponding to the main video signal and the sub video signal is an image at substantially the same time. 3. The recording device according to claim 1, wherein the first data group is a DVD (Digital Versatil).
VOBU (Video Ob) in eDisc) recording format
recording apparatus, wherein the second data group is a cell in a DVD recording format, and the third data group is an interleaving unit in a DVD recording format. 4. The recording apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the interleaving unit is obtained by adding stuffing data for making a boundary of the interleaving unit coincide with a boundary of a sector on a recording medium to the GOP. A recording device characterized by the above-mentioned. 5. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sub-video signal is depth information for reproducing a stereoscopic video,
Alternatively, the recording device is a compound-eye video signal. 6. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sub-video signal is an auxiliary video signal for reproducing a fine image. 7. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein identification data for identifying that said main video signal and said sub video signal are being recorded is recorded. Recording device. 8. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein identification data for identifying the main video signal and the sub video signal is recorded. 9. An input unit for inputting a plurality of video signals including at least a main video signal and a sub video signal, and an audio signal, and recording the signal input by the input unit on a recording medium. 8. A recording device according to claim 8, further comprising: a detection unit configured to detect a change in a signal input by the input unit, wherein when the change in the signal is detected by the detection unit, the input is performed by the input unit. A monitoring system, wherein a plurality of video signals and audio signals are recorded substantially simultaneously on the recording medium.