JP2008263251A - Monitor camera apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an inexpensive surveillance camera apparatus which can monitor a plurality of moving images corresponding to a plurality of discretionary directions in the entire circumference within 360° by a single video camera at the same time, and can cover a wide range. <P>SOLUTION: Reflection light from a mirror surface body which rotates at high speed in one direction is photographed with the video camera, image sampling is performed using a signal synchronous with the rotating angle of the mirror surface body while being adjusted by a unit of frame, furthermore tilt of the images is corrected whereby an image which can be monitored by a plurality of monitors is formed. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a surveillance camera device capable of simultaneously displaying moving images in a plurality of directions with a single camera.

  With the rapid increase in the number of crimes in recent years, the scale of the security industry is also expanding dramatically. Surveillance cameras have become particularly prominent in places where traffic is low at night, such as under parks, guards, and back streets of downtown areas. When trying to monitor a wide area with these surveillance cameras, the number of cameras is increased or an expensive wide-angle lens is adopted, which is costly.

Therefore, a method of turning the camera as shown in Patent Document 1 and a method of photographing the reflected light by shaking the mirror body and fixing the camera as shown in Patent Document 2 are proposed.
JP-A-5-191946 JP-A-60-169840

  However, in the above-described conventional configuration, in the case of Patent Document 1, since the power supply line and the video output line connected to the camera are connected to the fixed side, the camera cannot continuously rotate and has a limited turning angle. Had to repeat the reciprocating motion. Further, even in Patent Document 2 in which the camera is fixed, since the reflected light deviates from the visual field of the camera if the mirror body swing angle exceeds a certain value, the range that can be swung and monitored is limited. It was. In addition, in either case, if the turning speed of the camera or mirror is too fast, the monitor cannot see the monitor image, so the turning speed needs to be very low, so no matter how wide the monitoring range is, There was a problem that the time during which a certain direction could not be monitored became longer, and there was a high possibility that the scene of the crime occurrence could not be caught.

  An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems and to provide a surveillance camera device capable of simultaneously monitoring a plurality of moving images in a plurality of directions over a 360 ° circumference with a single camera.

  In order to solve the above-described conventional problems, the surveillance camera device of the present invention includes a mirror body that rotates around an axis inclined with respect to a mirror surface, a video camera that captures the mirror surface of the mirror body and sends a video signal, An angle sensor that detects a rotation angle of the mirror body and sends angle information; and an image processing device that captures the video signal from the video camera and the angle information from the angle sensor in association with the video and the angle value. The image processing apparatus extracts a still image corresponding to a certain rotation angle value of the mirror body to form a continuous moving image, and combines a plurality of moving images corresponding to a plurality of rotation angle values.

  In a preferred embodiment, the rotation axis of the mirror body and the optical axis of the video camera are provided in parallel.

  In a preferred embodiment, the rotation axis of the mirror body and the optical axis of the video camera are substantially matched.

  In a preferred embodiment, the image processing apparatus uses the angle value of the mirror body when the video captured by the video camera is in an upright state as a reference, and responds according to the relative angle value of the mirror body from the reference value. Performs processing to rotate the image.

  In a preferred embodiment, the angle at which the image is rotated is the same value as the relative angle value of the specular body.

  In a preferred embodiment, the image processing apparatus performs a process of mirror-inverting the left and right of the video.

  In a preferred embodiment, the video information is deleted from a portion that is outside the displayable size by rotating the mirror and inverting the mirror.

  In a preferred embodiment, the image is rotated and mirror-reversed, so that black image information is added to a portion where there is no image information in the displayable size.

  In a preferred embodiment, a plurality of moving images synthesized by the image processing apparatus are sent to individual monitors.

  In a preferred embodiment, a plurality of moving images synthesized by the image processing apparatus are sent to individual image recording means.

  In a preferred embodiment, the minimum angle between the mirror surface of the mirror body and the rotation axis of the mirror body is set to a value between 10 degrees and 80 degrees.

  In a preferred embodiment, there is provided means for freely setting an angle between the mirror surface of the mirror body and the rotation axis of the mirror body.

  In a preferred embodiment, the rotation of the mirror body is intermittent drive that repeats rotation and stop, and the stop time of the mirror body is longer than the time required for the video camera to capture a single frame (time-lapse time) The image processing apparatus extracts from the video captured by the video camera within the mirror body stop time.

  In a preferred embodiment, the image processing apparatus includes an adjustment function that adjusts the timing for extracting video in units of time (time-lapse period) until the video camera captures the next frame from one frame of video.

  In a preferred embodiment, the mirror body rotation period (time required for one rotation) is a value that is an integral multiple of the time-lapse period of the video camera.

  In a preferred embodiment, the stop time at an arbitrary rotation angle of the mirror body is set longer than the stop time in normal intermittent driving.

  In a preferred embodiment, the stop time of the mirror body longer than the stop time in normal intermittent driving is longer than the value of the time-lapse time of the video camera + the time-lapse period.

  In a preferred embodiment, the mirror body is rotated by pulse driving, and the angle sensor combines the absolute angle value of the mirror body detected by the fixed sensor and the relative angle value calculated from the number of pulses as angle information. Send it out.

  In a preferred embodiment, the angle sensor corrects the angle information of the specular body by a fixed sensor.

  In a preferred embodiment, a transparent protective cover is provided around the mirror body.

  As described above, according to the surveillance camera device of the present invention, the reflected light of the mirror body rotating at high speed in one direction is photographed by the video camera, and the image sampling is performed using the synchronization signal with the rotation angle of the mirror body. In addition, by correcting the tilt of the image, a single video camera can simultaneously monitor a plurality of moving images corresponding to a plurality of directions from all around 360 degrees, and can cover a wide area at a low cost. A surveillance camera device can be provided.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an overview of a surveillance camera device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a side view showing an overview of a photographing unit of the surveillance camera. In FIGS. 1 and 2, reference numeral 100 denotes an image captured by a video camera capable of capturing a moving image installed in a vertical orientation as a video signal 110. Reference numeral 200 denotes a mirror body having a mirror surface 201. Reference numeral 300 denotes a stepping motor that rotates by pulse input. The mirror body 200 attached to the tip of the drive shaft 301 is rotated around the rotation shaft 300a while being intermittently driven in the direction of the arrow 300R. The mirror body 200 is attached to the drive shaft 301 of the stepping motor 300 by a joint 210, and the minimum angle 200A between the mirror surface 201 and the rotating shaft 300a can be freely set between 10 degrees and 80 degrees. The video camera 100 is also configured to be tilted by an inclination angle 100A around the intersection of the mirror surface 201 and the rotating shaft 300a from a state where the lens optical axis 100a coincides with the rotating shaft 300a. Reference numeral 400 denotes a position sensor that detects the position of the mirror body 200 when the reflected light from the mirror surface 201 forms an erect image on the video camera 100. Reference numeral 500 denotes a motor driver circuit for driving the stepping motor 300. In this motor driver circuit 500, the detected position of the mirror body 200 by the position sensor 400 is set to an absolute angle value (in this case, 0 degree) and is input to the stepping motor 300. A function as an angle sensor that adds the number of pulses as a relative angle value to the absolute angle value and sends this value as the angle information 510 of the mirror body 200 is also incorporated. Reference numeral 600 denotes a case in which the video camera 100, the mirror body 200, the stepping motor 300, the position sensor 400, and the motor driver circuit 500 are housed. A transparent portion 601 is provided above the case 600. Reference numeral 700 denotes an image processing apparatus that captures the video signal 110 sent from the video camera 100 in association with the angle information 510 of the mirror body 200 sent from the motor driver circuit 500. Reference numerals 801 to 804 denote monitors that respectively display a plurality (four) of moving image signals that are processed and transmitted by the image processing apparatus 700. An arrow 201N, an arrow 201E, an arrow 201S, and an arrow 201W represent directions after the lens optical axis 100a of the video camera 100 is reflected by the mirror body 200, and a surface 200D formed by a set of these arrows is The monitoring direction by the monitoring camera device is shown. Here, 10N, 10E, 10S, and 10W are scenery around 90 degrees around the surveillance camera device.

  The operation and processing of the surveillance camera device configured as described above will be described below with reference to FIGS.

  First, as shown in FIG. 2, a minimum angle 200A between the mirror surface 201 and the rotating shaft 300a is set by the joint 210. As shown in FIG. 3, when the minimum angle 200A is 45 degrees, the monitoring direction 200D is a plane 200D0. When the angle is 45 degrees or more, a downward cone 200D1 is formed, and when it is 45 degrees or less, the upward cone 200D2 is formed. If the minimum angle 200A is 80 degrees or more, only the monitoring camera device itself can be monitored. If the minimum angle 200A is 10 degrees or less, the mirror surface 201 falls asleep with respect to the lens optical axis 100a. Therefore, the minimum angle 200A of the joint 210 is set between 10 degrees and 80 degrees. Next, as shown in FIG. 2, an inclination angle 100A of the lens optical axis 100a of the video camera 100 with respect to the rotation axis 300a is set by means not shown. As shown in FIG. 4, the camera monitoring direction 200D is also tilted (200D ') in the direction in which the video camera 100 is tilted (100'). Thus, the monitoring range is set by setting the minimum angle 200A between the mirror body 200 and the rotation axis 300a and the angle between the lens optical axis 100a of the video camera 100 and the rotation axis 300a.

  Next, pulses are generated from the motor driver circuit 500 to intermittently drive the stepping motor 300 to rotate the mirror body 200 in the direction of the arrow 300R. When the mirror body 200 faces the upper surface 100U of the video camera 100 and an erect image is formed on the video camera 100, the position sensor 400 detects the position of the mirror body 200, and this detection signal is sent to the motor driver circuit 500. Thus, the absolute angle value of the mirror body 200 (in this example, 0 degrees because it is an erect image at the time of detection) is recognized. Then, the relative angle value is calculated by counting the number of drive pulses from this time point, and added to the previous absolute angle value (0 degree) to obtain angle information 510 as the rotation angle value from the erect image position of the mirror body 200. Is transmitted to the image processing apparatus 700. At the same time, the video camera 100 is operated to transmit the video signal 110 to the image processing apparatus 700.

  Here, the detection of the absolute angle value by the position sensor 400 may be basically performed only once at the beginning, but the mirror 200 is also taken into consideration when the stepping motor 300 is stepped out due to disturbances such as train vibration. Is detected by the position sensor 400 and the angle information 510 is corrected.

  Subsequent processing operations by the image processing apparatus 700 will be described in four steps.

  In step 1, a series of moving images in which the angle information 510 and the video signal 110 are associated with each other are created as shown in FIG.

  Next, in step 2, video signals 110 having the same value of the angle information 510 are extracted from these moving images with respect to a plurality of angle information 510 (in this example, four types every 90 degrees), as shown in FIG. Are combined as a moving image. However, since the reflected light of the rotating mirror surface 201 is captured by the stationary video camera 100, the image is tilted or inverted depending on the rotation angle of the mirror body 200.

  Therefore, in step 3, the image processing apparatus 700 performs a process of rotating the image by the value of the angle information 510 in the direction opposite to the rotation direction of the mirror body 200 viewed from the video camera 100. In other words, in this example, the mirror body 200 is rotated counterclockwise when viewed from the video camera 100, so that an image whose angle information 510 is 90 degrees is rotated 90 degrees to the right, and an image of 270 degrees is rotated 270 degrees to the right. In this way, the moving images shown in FIG. 7 are obtained, but these are reversed because they are reflected by the mirror surface.

  Therefore, in step 4, as shown in FIG. 8, these moving images are mirror-reversed to form an upright image in each direction. As shown in FIG. 1, the scenery 10N in the direction of the arrow 201N is displayed on the monitor 801 and the direction of the arrow 201E. The scenery 10E is projected on the monitor 802, the scenery 10S in the direction of the arrow 201S is projected on the monitor 803, and the scenery 10W in the direction of the arrow 201W is projected on the monitor 804.

  Next, FIG. 9 is a timing chart showing the relationship between the rotation angle of the mirror body 200 intermittently driven by the stepping motor 300 and the image capture timing by the video camera 100. As a general characteristic of the stepping motor 300, with respect to a drive pulse as shown in FIG. 9, the output shaft (in this case, the mirror body 200) causes "response delay" or "overshoot" due to the characteristics of the control circuit and inertial force. . Accordingly, the rotational operation of the mirror body 200 includes an “unstable time” DT that combines the “response delay” and “overshoot” regions and the rotationally moving region, and a stopped “stop time” ST (FIG. 9) are alternately generated. On the other hand, regardless of whether the shooting mode of the video camera 100 is 60i (60 fields / interlace per second) or 30p (30 frames / progressive per second), the normal video camera 100 takes time to capture one frame (one frame). ) Is 1/30 second, which is the same as the time taken from one frame of video to the next frame (frame shooting cycle), and the mirror body 200 will be blurred if it has not stopped for at least 1/30 second. End up. Therefore, the stop time ST of the stepping motor 300 is 1/30 second or more, and the step period PT obtained by adding the unstable time DT to the stop time ST is also 1/30 second or more (step speed 30 pps or less).

Here, when it is assumed that the step angle SA of the mirror body 200 and the image extraction cycle (the rotation cycle of the mirror body 200) To,
To (seconds / lap) = 360 (degrees / lap) × PT (seconds / step) / SA (degrees / step)
Therefore, if the step period PT is 1/20 second and the step angle SA is 18 degrees, the image extraction period To is 1 second.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 9, for example, there are frames (frames) such as A (A ′) and F (F ′) that enter the stop time ST, and B (B ′) and D (D ′). Some frames (frames) do not enter the stop time ST. Therefore, the image processing apparatus 700 is provided with an adjustment function that can extract an image to be monitored in units of a frame-taking period, and it is possible to select a non-blurred frame (frame) while viewing the monitor screen. Since the frame (frame) adjusted by this function always enters the stop region, the image extraction cycle (the rotation cycle of the mirror body 200) To is the frame shooting cycle of the video camera 100, that is, 1/30 second which is the frame cycle. The value is an integer multiple of.

  Further, when a moving image is formed where the angle of the mirror body is not 90 degrees from the upright position, the formed image 111 is inclined with respect to the displayable image size 111f as shown in FIG. A portion 111a and a portion 111b having no video information are generated. The image processing apparatus also has a function of deleting the protruding portion 111a and adding black video information to the portion 111b having no video information.

  Here, in consideration of the step-out of the stepping motor 300, the number of pulses is counted and the mirror 200 is detected by the position sensor 400. However, the absolute angle is determined by providing an encoder in the stepping motor 300 instead of the position sensor 400. The value may be monitored.

  Although the video camera is tilted here, the same effect can be obtained by changing the tilt angle 300a of the mirror surface in synchronization with the rotation or by tilting the entire case.

  In addition, the monitoring is performed while the mirror body is rotated. However, depending on the necessity for each monitoring direction and the time zone, the mirror body is sometimes stopped at a certain angle, and the image processing apparatus performs step 3 (video rotation). Only step 4 (horizontal inversion) may be performed.

  In addition, the angle of the mirror body that forms the moving image is set every 90 degrees, but the moving image may be formed at an angle with a different value at random depending on the direction to be monitored.

  In addition, this surveillance camera device is characterized in that it can display moving images in a plurality of directions simultaneously on the monitor, but according to a temporary request from the user, the mirror body can be stopped in an arbitrary fixed direction and a moving image in only that direction can be monitored. Needless to say, you can use it.

  In addition, the position sensor is supposed to detect the position of the mirror surface where the video camera forms an erect image. However, the position sensor is located at a position deviated by a certain angle from the position where the erect image is formed. Even if the angle is corrected, the same effect can be obtained.

  When tilting the video camera, it is assumed that the lens optical axis passes through the intersection of the mirror surface and the rotation axis. If this is not done, the height of the monitoring direction will vary slightly depending on the direction of rotation of the mirror surface. As long as it is not monitored, there will be no adverse effects that would hinder monitoring. However, in the case of this example, the area of the mirror surface can be reduced and the apparatus can be downsized.

  Further, it goes without saying that the image processing apparatus can obtain the same effect even when a plurality of monitor moving images are connected to form a horizontally long omnidirectional image and projected onto the omnidirectional screen. In this case, it is needless to say that overlap between images to be joined can be avoided by using the angle information of the mirror body.

  As described above, according to the surveillance camera device of the present invention, the reflected light of the mirror body rotating at high speed in one direction is photographed by the video camera, and the sampling of the image is performed using the synchronization signal with the rotation angle of the mirror body. Low-cost, by performing adjustment while adjusting in units, and by further correcting the tilt of the image, a single video camera can simultaneously monitor a plurality of moving images corresponding to a plurality of directions from 360 degrees around the entire circumference. In addition, a surveillance camera device that can cover a wide area can be provided. In addition, by providing a transparent portion on the case, it is possible to prevent the mirror surface from being soiled or injured by the rotating mirror surface.

(Embodiment 2)
Next, a monitoring camera device according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention will be described below.

  The configuration of the monitoring camera device according to the second embodiment of the present invention is exactly the same as that of the monitoring camera device (FIGS. 1 to 10) according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and thus the description thereof is omitted. The difference from Embodiment 1 of the present invention is that the relationship between the rotation angle of the mirror body 200 intermittently driven by the stepping motor 300 and the image capture by the video camera 100 is set as shown in FIG. That is, in FIG. 11, the stepping motor 300 is driven at a higher speed than in FIG. Then, the operation of driving at high speed is repeated. The time during which the mirror body 200 is actually stopped is the time obtained by removing the response delay and overshoot from the drive pulse stop time HT (stop time ST1). The stop time ST1 is set to be equal to or longer than 1/15 second obtained by adding the time-lapse period (1/30 second) to the time-lapse time (1/30 second). As a result, one frame (frame) (1/30 second) of the image always enters the stop time ST1 of the mirror body 200. Then, the same adjustment as that in the first embodiment is performed on the image corresponding to the set angle, and a stable frame (frame) that falls within the stop time ST1 is extracted. Further, if the time required for one rotation of the mirror body 200 is set to an integral multiple of 1/15 second, a frame (frame) corresponding to each cycle calculated from the rotation speed can be selected. It is possible to continue extracting images in the same direction of the mirror body 200).

  Here, the time-lapse time taken by the video camera is assumed to be the same as the time-lapse period. However, if the time-lapse time is shorter than the time-lapse period, such as a video camera using an electronic shutter as shown in FIG. By setting the stop time to a time obtained by adding the time-lapse period to the time-lapse time, one frame can be reliably provided within the stop time.

  With this method, the image extraction cycle can be set regardless of the step angle and the rotation speed, so that a smooth monitoring image can be obtained. Also, the stop time of the mirror body can be made sufficiently large, and one frame (frame) always enters completely within the stop time, so the monitoring direction can be freely set in any direction. In addition, since there is no restriction on the step angle and the rotational speed, direct drive without a deceleration (acceleration) mechanism can be achieved and the size can be reduced.

  The surveillance camera device according to the present invention is capable of simultaneously monitoring a plurality of moving images corresponding to a plurality of directions from an entire circumference of 360 degrees with a single video camera, and capable of covering a wide area at a low cost. A device can be provided and useful.

The perspective view which shows the whole outline | summary of the surveillance camera apparatus in Embodiment 1 of this invention. The side view which shows the outline | summary of the surveillance camera apparatus in Embodiment 1 of this invention The perspective view which shows the monitoring direction of the monitoring camera apparatus in Embodiment 1 of this invention The perspective view which shows the monitoring direction of the monitoring camera apparatus in Embodiment 1 of this invention The top view which shows the moving image which the surveillance camera apparatus in Embodiment 1 of this invention produces The top view which shows the moving image which the surveillance camera apparatus in Embodiment 1 of this invention produces The top view which shows the moving image which the surveillance camera apparatus in Embodiment 1 of this invention produces The top view which shows the moving image which the surveillance camera apparatus in Embodiment 1 of this invention produces Timing chart showing the relationship between the rotation of the mirror body of the surveillance camera device and the image capture in the first embodiment of the present invention The figure which shows the image processing of the surveillance camera apparatus in Embodiment 1 of this invention Timing chart showing the relationship between the rotation of the mirror body of the surveillance camera device and the image capture in the second embodiment of the present invention Timing chart showing another example of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Video camera 110 Video signal 200 Mirror surface body 201 Mirror surface 300 Stepping motor 400 Position sensor 500 Motor driver circuit (angle sensor)
510 Angle information 600 Case 700 Image processing device 801, 802, 803, 804 Monitor

Claims (20)

A specular body that rotates about an axis inclined with respect to the specular surface;
A video camera that shoots the mirror surface of this mirror and sends out a video signal;
An angle sensor that detects a rotation angle of the mirror body and sends out angle information;
An image processing device that captures the video signal from the video camera and the angle information from the angle sensor with a correspondence between the video and the angle value;
The image processing device is a monitoring camera device that extracts a video corresponding to a certain rotation angle value of the mirror body to form a continuous moving image, and combines a plurality of moving images corresponding to a plurality of rotation angle values. The surveillance camera device according to claim 1, wherein the rotation axis of the mirror surface and the optical axis of the video camera are provided in parallel. The surveillance camera device according to claim 1, wherein the rotation axis of the mirror body and the optical axis of the video camera are substantially matched. A process in which the image processing device rotates the corresponding image according to the relative angle value of the mirror body from the reference value based on the angle value of the mirror body when the image taken by the video camera is in an upright state The surveillance camera device according to claim 1, wherein: The surveillance camera device according to claim 4, wherein the angle at which the image is rotated is the same value as the relative angle value of the mirror body. The surveillance camera device according to claim 1, wherein the image processing device performs processing for mirror-inverting the left and right of the video. The surveillance camera device according to claim 4 or 6, wherein the video information of a portion protruding from a displayable size is deleted by rotating the video and inverting the mirror. 7. The surveillance camera device according to claim 4 or 6, wherein black video information is added to a portion where there is no video information in a displayable size by rotating the video and inverting the mirror. The surveillance camera device according to claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of moving images synthesized by the image processing device is sent to an individual monitor. The surveillance camera device according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of moving images synthesized by the image processing device are sent to individual image recording means. The surveillance camera device according to claim 1, wherein a minimum angle between the mirror surface of the mirror body and the rotation axis of the mirror body is set to a value between 10 degrees and 80 degrees. The monitoring camera device according to claim 11, further comprising means for freely setting an angle between a mirror surface of the mirror body and a rotation axis of the mirror body. The rotation of the mirror body is intermittent drive that repeats rotation and stop, and the stop time of the mirror body is longer than the time required for the video camera to capture a single frame (time-lapse time). The surveillance camera device according to claim 1, wherein the video camera performs extraction from an image captured within a stop time of the mirror body. The surveillance camera device according to claim 13, wherein the image processing device includes an adjustment function for adjusting a timing for extracting a video in units of time (a time-lapse period) until the video camera captures a next frame from one frame of video. The surveillance camera device according to claim 13, wherein the rotation period of the mirror body (time required for one rotation) is a value that is an integral multiple of the time-lapse period of the video camera. The surveillance camera device according to claim 13, wherein the stop time at an arbitrary rotation angle of the mirror body is set longer than the stop time in normal intermittent driving. The surveillance camera device according to claim 16, wherein the stop time of the mirror body longer than the stop time in normal intermittent driving is longer than the value of the time-lapse time of the video camera + the time-lapse period. 2. The mirror body is rotated by pulse driving, and the angle sensor synthesizes the absolute angle value of the mirror body detected by a fixed sensor and the relative angle value calculated from the number of pulses, and sends it out as angle information. Surveillance camera device. The monitoring camera device according to claim 18, wherein the angle sensor corrects the angle information of the mirror body by a fixed sensor. The surveillance camera device according to claim 1, wherein a transparent protective cover is provided around the mirror body.

Images