JP5715775B2 - Image monitoring system and image monitoring method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an image monitoring system and an image monitoring method for remotely monitoring a monitoring target area using a monitoring camera.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as one of crime and disaster countermeasures, a system has been put into practical use in which a monitoring camera is installed in a monitoring target area and the damage or damage situation in the monitoring target area is monitored based on the captured image. In addition, a system has been proposed in which this monitoring system can be used to check the status of a user who is going out by an image. In this system, for example, a user has a portable terminal equipped with a position measuring function by GPS (Global Positioning System). Then, when an emergency signal is transmitted from the portable terminal, the surveillance camera closest to the current position of the portable terminal is operated based on the position information associated with the emergency signal in the direction of the portable terminal. Therefore, it is possible to check the image data of the site where the emergency occurred (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2007-329757 A

  However, this type of conventional system requires the system operator to manually register and set the installation position and orientation of the surveillance camera and the preset position of the surveillance area based on the surveillance camera before starting the system operation. To spend a lot of time and effort.

The present invention has been made paying attention to the above circumstances, and the object of the present invention is to eliminate the need for setting the installation position and orientation of the monitoring camera and automatically assign the monitoring area to the monitoring camera. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an image monitoring system and an image monitoring method which can improve the workability by greatly reducing the time and labor required for the setting work.

One aspect of the present invention in order to achieve the above object, the monitored area, as well as installing a plurality of monitoring camera provided with a means for measuring the Installation location means及beauty itself for detecting the imaging direction, they A management server is provided that can communicate with a plurality of monitoring cameras via a communication network. Then, the management server receives the information indicating the detected imaging direction and the position information indicating the measured installation position from the plurality of monitoring cameras via the communication network, and indicates the received imaging direction. Based on the information and the position information, and information indicating the position and size of the obstacle in the monitoring target area, a monitoring charge area is assigned to each of the plurality of monitoring cameras.

  Accordingly, the installation position and the imaging direction of the monitoring camera are obtained from information sent from the monitoring camera, and based on this information, processing for assigning the monitoring area to the monitoring camera is automatically performed. This eliminates the need for the system operator to manually set the installation position and orientation of the surveillance camera, preset positions for each surveillance area, etc. before starting the system operation. The time and labor required for setting can be greatly reduced.

That is, according to the present invention, it is possible to automatically assign the monitoring area to the monitoring camera without setting the installation position and orientation of the monitoring camera, thereby greatly increasing the time and labor required for the setting work. Thus, it is possible to provide an image monitoring system and an image monitoring method that are improved in workability.

1 is a diagram illustrating an overall configuration of an image monitoring system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The block diagram which shows the structure of the management server of the image monitoring system shown in FIG. The figure for demonstrating the allocation process of the monitoring area with respect to the monitoring camera by the management server shown in FIG. The figure which shows the example in the case of managing a monitoring plane with latitude / longitude information, and the allocation example of the latitude / longitude information with respect to the monitoring image of a camera. The figure which shows the example of a display of the monitoring screen shown in FIG. The figure which shows the example of a display of the monitoring image in the portable terminal of the image monitoring system shown in FIG. The figure which shows an example of a reference | standard image and the image at the time of a disaster. The figure which shows the example of a display of the distribution of the danger area at the time of a disaster, and the detour route at that time. The figure which shows the whole structure of the image monitoring system concerning the 2nd Embodiment of this invention.

Embodiments according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of an image monitoring system according to the first embodiment of the present invention, which is configured as follows.
That is, a plurality of monitoring cameras 1, 1,... Are distributed in the monitoring target area. These surveillance cameras 1, 1,... Are composed of a pan head for changing the imaging direction (pan, tilt direction) and a movable camera equipped with a zoom mechanism for changing the magnification of the lens. An azimuth sensor and a tilt sensor are provided. The position sensor detects the installation position of the camera using GPS (Global Positioning System). The installation position is represented by latitude, longitude, and height. The direction sensor uses a gyro, for example, and detects the installation direction of the camera. The tilt sensor detects the tilt angle when the camera is installed.

  The surveillance cameras 1, 1,... Have a function of transmitting captured image data to the management server 9 via the router 2 and the communication network 8, and each detection data of the installation position, installation direction, and inclination obtained by the sensors. A function of transmitting to the management server 9 is provided. The captured image data is transmitted from the management server 9 to the image recording device 10 via the communication network 8 and recorded. The image recording apparatus 10 is constituted by a database server, for example.

  An image processing device 3 is connected to the router 2 to which the monitoring cameras 1, 1,. The image processing apparatus 3 has the following functions. That is, the normal image data is periodically acquired for each surveillance camera 1, 1,..., And environmental factors such as swaying of plants and fluctuation image components due to moving objects such as vehicles and people are removed from this image data. Then, the image data after the removal process is updated and stored as reference image data. Then, the image data obtained by the monitoring cameras 1, 1,... Is periodically compared with the basic image data, and when the difference is larger than a threshold value, danger notification data is generated and transmitted to the management server 9. .

  A mobile terminal 4 possessed by a user is connected to a communication network 8 via an access point 5 of a wireless LAN (Local Area Network) or a base station (not shown) of a cellular mobile communication network. Connection to the management server 9 is possible. The portable terminal 4 is composed of a portable information terminal such as a cellular phone or a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant), and has a position measuring function using GPS. Further, when transmitting the monitoring image data display request to the management server 9, the portable terminal 4 transmits the position information of the own terminal detected by the GPS position measurement function, thereby monitoring the area where the own terminal exists. It has a function of receiving image data from the management server 9 and displaying it. Further, the mobile terminal 4 is configured to display a control signal for remotely operating the camera platform or lens of the monitoring cameras 1, 1,... It also has a function of transmitting a control signal for selecting 1, 1,.

The monitoring terminal 6 is connected to a router 7 via a wired LAN, and can be connected to the management server 9 via the communication network 8 from the router 7. The monitoring terminal 6 is composed of a personal computer, for example, and has almost the same function as the portable information terminal 4. This monitoring terminal 6 is used for a user or a monitor to check monitoring image data at home or in the office.
For example, an IP (Internet Protocol) network represented by the Internet is used as the communication network 8.

  By the way, the management server 9 is configured as follows. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration. The management server 9 includes a central processing unit (CPU) 11, and a program memory 13, a data memory 14, a communication interface 15, and an input / output interface 16 are connected to the CPU 11 via a bus 12. Yes.

  The communication interface 15 communicates with the monitoring cameras 1, 1,..., The image processing device 3, the portable terminal 4, the monitoring terminal 6, and the image recording device 10 according to a communication protocol defined by the communication network 8 under the control of the CPU 11. Image data and control signals are transmitted and received between them. For example, TCP / IP (Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol) is used as the communication protocol.

  An input unit 17 and a display unit 18 for maintenance are connected to the input / output interface 16. The input / output interface 16 performs processing for receiving control data and the like input through the input unit 17 and processing for displaying system management information and the like on the display unit 18.

The data memory 14 is provided with a camera installation information database 141, a user information database 142, and a map information database 143.
The camera installation information database 141 stores information representing the camera installation state such as the camera installation position, installation direction, and tilt angle obtained from each of the monitoring cameras 1, 1,. ,... Are stored with the preset area and the preset position number in the monitoring range set for.

  The user information database 142 stores information for managing users registered for use in the system. This user information includes information representing user attributes such as a user name, identification information (terminal ID) of the mobile terminal 4 or the monitoring terminal 6 used by the user, a telephone number, and address information.

  The map information database 143 stores map information of areas including the monitoring target area. The map information includes position data representing the latitude, longitude and height of each position on the map, and data representing the position and size of mountains, valleys and buildings existing on the map.

  The program memory 13 stores a monitoring area allocation control program 131, a camera remote control program 132, a danger monitoring control program 133, a route map creation program 134, and a safety confirmation image creation program 135.

The monitoring area allocation control program 131 causes the CPU 11 to execute the following processing.
(1) Information indicating the camera installation state such as the camera installation position, installation direction, and inclination angle is acquired from each monitoring camera 1, 1,..., And the information indicating the acquired camera installation state is obtained as the camera installation information. Processing to be stored in the database 141.
(2) Based on the information indicating the installation state of the camera stored in the camera installation information database 141 and the information indicating the position and size of the building and the like stored in the map information database 143, the monitoring camera 1, An area in charge of monitoring is set for each monitoring camera 1, 1,... On the map in consideration of obstacles. And the process which memorize | stores in the said camera installation information database 141 the information showing the position of this set monitoring charge area.

The camera remote control program 132 causes the CPU 11 to execute the following processing.
(1) When a monitoring image acquisition request is sent from the mobile terminal 4, the information indicating the current position of the mobile terminal 4 sent with the request and each monitoring camera 1, 1 stored in the camera installation information database 141. ,... Is selected based on the information indicating the installation positions of the requesting mobile terminals 4. Then, the monitoring image data sent from the selected monitoring camera 4, the map data in which the current position of the requesting mobile terminal and the installation positions of the surrounding monitoring cameras are displayed on the map are displayed. Processing to send to 4 and display.

  (2) When a control signal for remotely operating the camera is sent from the portable terminal 4 in a state where the monitoring image data and the map data are displayed, imaging of the corresponding monitoring camera according to the operation control signal Processing to control direction and magnification.

  (3) When a control signal for selecting a camera is sent from the mobile terminal 4 in a state where the monitoring image data and the map data are displayed, the monitoring camera instructed by the selection control signal is selected, Processing for transmitting the monitoring image data to the requesting mobile terminal 4 for display. At this time, the map data displayed on the portable terminal 4 is also updated.

  The danger monitoring control program 133, when danger notification data is sent from the image processing apparatus 3, displays the danger area on the map by color-coding, for example, according to the degree of danger based on the danger notice data. Generate and save a display map. Then, when a display request for the danger display map is sent from the mobile terminal 4, the risk of the area where the requesting mobile terminal 4 exists based on the current position information of the mobile terminal 4 sent together with the display request. Processing for selecting a display map, sending it to the requesting mobile terminal 4 and displaying it.

  When a route map display request including information specifying a departure point and a planned arrival point is sent from the mobile terminal 4, the route map creation program 134 is displayed on the danger display map generated by the danger monitoring control program 133. Based on the position of the danger area and the risk level, a route for reaching the planned arrival point from the departure point is searched by bypassing an area having a risk level equal to or higher than a preset threshold value. And the process which produces | generates the route map which displayed this searched route on the map, and transmits and displays this route map to the said portable terminal 4 of a request | requirement origin.

The safety confirmation image creation program 135 causes the CPU 11 to execute the following processing.
(1) When a safety confirmation input screen is downloaded to the mobile terminal 4 or the monitoring terminal 6 of the user who requests safety confirmation, and the user inputs the telephone number or address information of the safety confirmation target person's mobile terminal on this input screen. In addition, the process of acquiring the location information of the corresponding safety confirmation subject based on the telephone number or address information.

  (2) Based on the acquired position information of the safety confirmation target person, the monitoring camera closest to the current position of the safety confirmation target person is selected. Further, by controlling the imaging direction of the monitoring camera in preset preset area units, the image data of the preset area where the safety confirmation target person exists is acquired, and the mobile terminal 4 or the monitoring terminal 6 that is the safety confirmation request source. Processing to send to and display.

Next, the operation of the system configured as described above will be described more specifically.
(1) Monitoring area allocation control for each monitoring camera When the monitoring cameras 1, 1,... Are installed and activated in the monitoring target area, each monitoring camera 1, 1,. The installation position (latitude, longitude and height), installation direction, and inclination angle are detected, respectively, and the detected data is transmitted to the management server 9 as information representing the camera installation state. The information indicating the installation state of the camera includes camera unique identification information.

  When the management server 9 receives information indicating the camera installation state transmitted from the monitoring cameras 1, 1,... Via the communication interface 15, the management server 9 receives the information indicating the received camera installation state according to the monitoring area allocation control program 131. Are stored in the camera installation information database 141.

  Next, based on the information indicating the camera installation state stored in the camera installation information database 141 and the information indicating the position and size of the building and the like stored in the map information database 143, the monitoring camera 1, An obstacle is detected for each 1,..., And a monitoring charge area for each monitoring camera 1, 1,... Is set on the map in consideration of the position and size of the obstacle. Further, for each set monitoring area, the area is divided into a plurality of preset areas in consideration of the angle of view of the camera, and information indicating the position of each divided preset area represents the preset position. The information is stored in the camera installation information database 141 together with information indicating the priority order of the cameras used when monitoring the preset area.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 3A, it is assumed that a monitoring camera is installed at the positions indicated by C1 and C2 in the monitoring target area E, and a structure B serving as an obstacle exists at an intermediate position. In this case, on the map, as shown in FIG. 3B, areas that can be imaged by the respective monitoring cameras with the structure B as a boundary are set as monitoring areas E1 and E2, respectively. When there is no obstacle, a point having the same distance from both monitoring cameras is set as the boundary of the monitoring area. Subsequently, in consideration of the angle of view of each monitoring camera, a plurality of preset areas PE11 to PE15, PE21 to PE27 are set for each of the set monitoring areas E1 and E2. At this time, the sizes of the preset areas PE11 to PE15 and PE21 to PE27 are set to be small because the imaging range is narrowed even if the angle of view is the maximum wide angle in the vicinity area of the surveillance camera, and is set to be larger as the distance is farther. Is done.

  Next, in accordance with the monitoring area allocation control program 131, the management server 9 transmits a remote control signal for the camera platform and zoom mechanism to each monitoring camera to rotate and zoom the camera, thereby the preset areas PE11 to 11 set above. The state where the camera is directed to the center is searched for each of PE15 and PE21 to PE27. Then, the state oriented toward the center is set as a preset position, and the turning angle and zoom magnification at this time are stored in the camera installation information database 141 in association with information representing the preset areas PE11 to PE15 and PE21 to PE27 together with the preset position number. .

  In addition, the management server 9 determines whether the area can be imaged by a plurality of monitoring cameras for each of the preset areas PE11 to PE15 and PE21 to PE27. Set the priority of the surveillance camera that captures the area. Then, the information indicating the set priority order of the monitoring camera is stored in the camera installation information database 141 in association with the information indicating the preset area. For example, in the preset area PE15 of FIG. 3B, the monitoring camera at the point C1 is ranked first and the monitoring camera at the point C2 is ranked second. For the preset area PE26, the surveillance camera at the point C2 is given the first priority, and the surveillance camera at the point C1 is given the second highest priority.

(2) Display of monitoring image data associated with position information The management server 9 stores information indicating the camera installation position (latitude, longitude, height) stored in the camera installation information database 141 and the map information storage unit 143. Based on the stored map information with latitude and longitude data, the monitoring target area E is divided into a plurality of small areas and managed according to the latitude and longitude as shown in FIG. 4A, for example.

  In this state, it is assumed that a monitoring image acquisition request is sent from the portable terminal 4 for a desired monitoring target area. The monitoring area is specified by, for example, transmitting map information from the management server 9 in response to access from the mobile terminal 4 and displaying it on the browser, and allowing the user of the mobile terminal 4 to display the desired map on the displayed map. This is done by clicking or touching a point or entering its address.

  Then, the management server 9 is based on the information indicating the current position of the mobile terminal 4 sent with the request and the information indicating the installation position of each monitoring camera 1, 1,... Stored in the camera installation information database 141. The monitoring camera closest to the requesting mobile terminal 4 is selected. Then, the monitoring image data D sent from the selected monitoring camera is transmitted to the requesting mobile terminal 4 and displayed on the browser. FIG. 4B shows an example of the display image, which is displayed in a state where a grid-like line indicating a small area is superimposed on the monitoring image D as information indicating latitude and longitude.

(3) Display of Surveillance Image for Safety Confirmation Here, a case will be described as an example where the family tries to confirm the safety of the user U who is out during a disaster.
The family user who wants to confirm the safety transmits a safety confirmation request of the user U from the mobile terminal 4 to the management server 9. This safety confirmation request is transmitted by, for example, transmitting a safety confirmation request input screen from the management server 9 in response to an access from the mobile terminal 4 and displaying it on the browser, so that the family user can display the displayed safety confirmation request input screen. Is performed by inputting the telephone number or address information of the portable terminal of the safety confirmation subject U.

  When receiving the safety confirmation request transmitted from the portable terminal 4, the management server 9 follows the safety confirmation image creation program 135, and the position of the corresponding safety confirmation target person U based on the telephone number or address information included in this request Get information. The position information of the safety confirmation target person U can be acquired from, for example, a position management server of the mobile communication carrier.

  Subsequently, the management server 9 can select a preset area including the current position of the safety confirmation target person U based on the acquired position information of the safety confirmation target person U, and image the selected preset area. A monitoring camera with the first priority set is selected from the other monitoring cameras. Furthermore, control is performed so that the imaging direction of the monitoring camera is directed to the selected preset area, thereby acquiring captured image data of the preset area where the safety confirmation target person U exists. And the safety confirmation image data which displayed the grid | lattice-like line which shows the position in this picked-up image data is created, this created safety confirmation image data is transmitted to the portable terminal 4 of the requesting family user, and the Display on browser. FIG. 5 shows an example of the display result of the safety confirmation image data.

  In the state where the safety confirmation image data is displayed, the family user designates the cutout area Ec where the safety confirmation target person U exists by touch operation or cursor operation, and sends an image transmission request of the cutout area Ec to the management server 9. Suppose you send it. Then, the management server 9 cuts out image data corresponding to the cutout area Ec designated by the request from the monitoring image data transmitted from the monitoring camera in units of preset areas. Then, the extracted monitoring image data is zoomed up by digital processing, and the zoomed-up monitoring image data is transmitted to the mobile terminal 4 of the requesting family user and displayed on the browser.

  As a result, the family user can extract the state of the safety confirmation target person U from a large number of disaster victims and confirm it pinpointed. In addition, since the extracted monitoring image data has a data amount smaller than that of the normal screen size, it can be transmitted without imposing a heavy load on the line even under a line condition in which traffic during disasters has increased. . Note that since the image quality deteriorates when the digital zoom-up process is performed, it is preferable to use a high-resolution camera such as a megapixel camera as the surveillance camera.

(4) Remote operation of the camera by the user When a monitoring image acquisition request is sent from the portable terminal 4, the management server 9 starts the camera remote control program 132, and information indicating the current position of the portable terminal 4 sent along with the request The monitoring camera closest to the requesting mobile terminal 4 is selected based on the information indicating the installation positions of the monitoring cameras 1, 1,... Stored in the camera installation information database 141. Then, the monitoring image data sent from the selected monitoring camera, the map data displaying the current position of the requesting mobile terminal 4 and the installation positions of the surrounding monitoring cameras on the map, the requesting mobile terminal 4 to display on the browser.

  FIG. 6 shows an example of the display result, and illustrates the case where the monitoring image data 41 is displayed in the upper half of the display area of the mobile terminal 4 and the map data is displayed in the lower half. In the map data 42, the position of the user U is indicated by an icon x, the position of the surveillance camera is indicated by icons C1, C2, and C3, and the imaging direction thereof is indicated by an arrow. Note that the position of the currently selected surveillance camera is displayed by changing the color of the icons C1, C2, and C3 to, for example, red.

  Incidentally, on the front surface of the portable terminal 4, as shown in FIG. 6, a pan head operation button 43, a zoom operation button 44, a focus operation button 45, and a pointing direction display area 46 are provided. When the portable terminal is a touch panel type, the operation buttons and the display area may be displayed on the touch panel.

  When the user operates the pan head operation button 43, the zoom operation button 44, and the focus operation button 45 in a state where the monitoring image data 41 and the map data 42 are displayed, control information representing these operations is transmitted from the portable terminal 4 to the management server. 9 is transmitted. The management server 9 transmits a control signal to the monitoring camera being selected according to the operation control information to control the imaging direction and magnification of the camera.

  When the mobile terminal 4 is a touch panel type, when a user touches an arbitrary position on the monitoring image data 41, an operation control signal including the touched position coordinates is sent to the monitoring server 9. The monitoring server 9 generates a pan head control signal from the difference between the position coordinates included in the sent operation control signal and the information indicating the current imaging direction, and transmits it to the monitoring camera. The surveillance camera drives the camera platform in accordance with the control signal so as to control the imaging direction of the camera to face the direction corresponding to the touched position.

When the icons C 1, C 2, and C 3 representing the positions of the monitoring cameras on the map data 42 are touched, information representing the touched icons is sent from the portable terminal 4 to the management server 9. When the management server 9 receives the information representing the icon, the management server 9 determines that the monitoring camera corresponding to the icon has been selected, transmits a control signal to the selected monitoring camera, and captures the imaging direction of the monitoring camera. In the direction of the user. Then, the captured image data transmitted from the monitoring camera and the map data in which the display color of the icon of the selected camera is updated are transmitted to the requesting mobile terminal 4 and displayed on the browser.
Accordingly, the user can arbitrarily remotely operate the surveillance camera while viewing the surveillance image and the map on his / her mobile terminal 4.

(5) Danger monitoring processing The image processing apparatus 3 periodically acquires the normal image data for each of the monitoring cameras 1, 1,..., And obtains this image data from environmental factors such as shaking of the plants, vehicles, people, etc. After the fluctuation image component due to the moving object is removed, it is updated and stored as reference image data. For example, when a disaster occurs, image data captured by the monitoring cameras 1, 1,... Is acquired and compared with the latest basic image data stored, and the difference is set as a plurality of threshold values. Compare. Based on the comparison result, the degree of risk is determined in a plurality of stages, and the determination result is transmitted to the management server 9 as danger notification data. The determination of the risk level is performed in four stages, for example, class A (high risk level), class B (medium risk level), class C (low risk level), and class D (no risk level). It should be noted that the level of “risk” or higher is set at a level where a person cannot pass.

  FIG. 7B shows an example of a captured image at the time of a disaster, and shows a state where a building collapses and blocks a road. When the image obtained at the time of the disaster is compared with the stored normal reference image and the difference is obtained, the difference value in this case is large, and as a result, it is determined that the level is “medium risk” or higher.

  When the danger notification data is sent from the image processing device 3, the management server 9 generates a danger display map in which the danger area is color-coded according to the degree of danger, for example, and displayed on the map based on the danger notice data. And save. Then, when a display request for the danger display map is sent from the mobile terminal 4, based on the current position information sent from the mobile terminal 4 together with the display request, the danger of the area where the requesting mobile terminal 4 exists A display map is created and transmitted to the requesting mobile terminal 4 for display.

FIG. 8A shows an example of this danger display map. Areas EG above “medium risk” are displayed in red, for example, and areas ES below “low risk” are displayed in blue, for example. The “low risk” area may be displayed in yellow, and the “no risk” area may be displayed in blue. It is also possible to express the degree of danger by the presence or absence of hatching or the shaded density.
Therefore, the user can check the surrounding dangerous area at a glance with his / her mobile terminal 4.

(6) Creation of Route Map When the user inputs a route display request for safe evacuation in the portable terminal 4 in a state where the danger display map is displayed, the route display request is sent from the portable terminal 4 to the management server. 9 is transmitted. When the management server 89 receives the route display request, the management server 89 starts the route map creation program 134 and bypasses the area EG of “in danger level” or higher on the danger display map to reach the planned arrival point P2 from the departure point P1. Find a route to do. And the route map which displayed this searched route on the map is produced | generated, and this route map is transmitted to the said portable terminal 4 of a request | requirement origin, and is displayed. FIG. 8B shows an example of a route map corresponding to the danger display map shown in FIG. 8A, and the route R is indicated by a thick solid line.
Therefore, the user can evacuate safely by avoiding the high risk area by using the route map.

  As described above in detail, in the first embodiment, when the monitoring cameras 1, 1,... Are provided with a position sensor, a direction sensor, and an inclination sensor, when the monitoring cameras 1, 1,. Information indicating the installation state of the camera such as the installation direction and the inclination angle is acquired by the management server 9 and stored. Then, the management server 9 is configured to monitor each of the monitoring cameras 1, 1,... Based on the information indicating the stored installation state of the camera and the information indicating the position and size of a building or the like stored in advance. Obstacles are detected, and a monitoring area for each of the monitoring cameras 1, 1,... Is set on the map in consideration of the position and size of the obstacles. Further, for each set monitoring area, the area is divided into a plurality of preset areas in consideration of the angle of view of the camera, and information indicating the position of each divided preset area represents the preset position. Information is stored together with information indicating the priority order of the camera when the preset area is monitored.

  Therefore, the installation positions and imaging directions of the monitoring cameras 1, 1,... Can be acquired from information indicating the installation state sent from the monitoring cameras 1, 1,. The assignment area assignment setting process is automatically performed. This eliminates the need for the system operator to manually set the installation positions and orientations of the monitoring cameras 1, 1,... And the preset positions for each monitoring area before starting the system operation. The time and labor required for registration setting can be greatly reduced.

(Second Embodiment)
In the second embodiment of the present invention, when a disaster or crime occurrence notification is sent from a user's mobile terminal, the management server 9 acquires monitoring image data of the area where the user of the notification exists from the monitoring camera The acquired monitoring image data is transmitted to the police or fire fighting server or terminal together with the alarm notification data.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of an image monitoring system according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, the management server 9 can communicate with a police or fire fighting operation terminal 110 via a communication network 8. In the figure, the same parts as those in FIG.

  When a user performs an alarm notification operation on his / her mobile terminal 4 or portable emergency call device 4 ′ in the event of a disaster or crime, an alarm notification signal is sent from the mobile terminal 4 or portable emergency call device 4 ′ to the management server 9 Will be sent. Upon receiving this alarm notification signal, the management server 9 determines the current location of the user of the notification source based on the location information of the mobile terminal 4 or portable emergency call device 4 ′ that is received together with the alarm notification signal. The preset area including the selected preset area is selected, and the surveillance camera with the first priority set is selected from the surveillance cameras capable of capturing the selected preset area. Further, control is performed so that the imaging direction of the monitoring camera is directed to the selected preset area, thereby acquiring the captured image data of the preset area where the reporting user exists. Then, the captured image data is transmitted to the police or fire fighting operation terminal 110 together with the alarm notification data.

  At the operation terminal 110 of the police or fire department, an alarm is generated based on the transmitted alarm notification data, and the captured image data of the disaster or crime occurrence site transmitted at the same time is displayed on a display or the like. Therefore, the police or firefighter can recognize the cause of the alarm based on the occurrence of the alarm, and confirm the situation in the field in real time based on the captured image data displayed above. Is possible.

The captured image data of the disaster or crime occurrence site is transferred from the management server 9 to the image recording device 10 and recorded. Accordingly, when an image acquisition request is sent from the police or fire fighting terminal 110 at a later date, the management server 9 reads the captured image data from the image recording device 10 and transmits it to the police or fire fighting operation terminal 110. It is possible.
Therefore, according to this embodiment, for example, a criminal image of a shoplifter or a suspicious person can be provided to the police. Also, based on the video recorded by the in-car surveillance camera in the train, It is also possible to report with a video.

(Other embodiments)
The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. For example, in the first embodiment, the case where the risk determination process based on the comparison of image data is performed by the image processing apparatus 3 has been described as an example. However, the process may be performed by the management server 9.

  In the second embodiment, the captured image data of the disaster or crime occurrence site is transmitted to the operation terminal 110 of the police or the fire department. However, the image data is also transmitted to the portable terminal owned by the alarm sender. You may make it make it. If it does in this way, it will become possible for the sender of an alarm itself to check in the self-portable terminal whether the situation of the occurrence site of a disaster or a crime is appropriately imaged. In addition, when the alarm sender remotely controls the imaging direction of the monitoring camera on his / her mobile terminal, it is possible to appropriately image the disaster or crime occurrence site.

In addition, the number and location of surveillance cameras installed, the configuration of the camera, the location of the management server 9, the location and functions of the management server 9 can be variously modified and implemented without departing from the scope of the present invention.
In short, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment as it is, and can be embodied by modifying the constituent elements without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. Further, various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of constituent elements disclosed in the embodiment. For example, some components may be deleted from all the components shown in the embodiment. Furthermore, you may combine suitably the component covering different embodiment.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Surveillance camera, 2, 7 ... Router, 3 ... Image processing apparatus, 4 ... Portable terminal, 5 ... Wireless access point, 6 ... Surveillance terminal, 8 ... Communication network, 9 ... System management server, 10 ... Image recording device, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 110 ... Terminal of emergency response organization, 11 ... Central processing unit (CPU), 12 ... Bus, 13 ... Program memory, 14 ... Data memory, 15 ... Communication interface, 16 ... Input / output interface, 17 ... Input part, 18 ... Display Sections 18, 41 ... monitoring image data, 42 ... map data, 43 ... head operation button, 44 ... zoom operation button, 45 ... focus operation button, 46 ... directional display area, 131 ... monitoring area allocation control program, 132 ... camera Remote control program, 133 ... Danger monitoring control program, 134 ... Route map creation program, 135 ... Safety confirmation Image creation program, 141 ... camera installation information database, 142 ... user information database, 143 ... reference image database, 144 ... map information database.

Claims (4)

Is installed in the monitored area, and a plurality of monitoring camera provided with a means for measuring the Installation location means及beauty itself for detecting the imaging direction, communicate respectively via a communication network between a plurality of surveillance cameras A possible management server,
The management server
Receiving means for receiving information representing the detected imaging direction and position information representing the measured installation position from the plurality of monitoring cameras via the communication network;
Storage means for storing information representing the position and size of the obstacle in the monitored area;
A setting for assigning and setting a monitoring charge area to each of the plurality of monitoring cameras based on the received information and position information indicating the imaging direction and the information indicating the position and size of the stored obstacle. And an image monitoring system.   The setting unit is configured to set the priority order of the monitoring cameras to be imaged when there are a plurality of monitoring cameras in charge for each of the monitoring charge areas of the plurality of assigned monitoring cameras. Item 8. The image monitoring system according to Item 1. Is installed in the monitored area, and a plurality of monitoring camera provided with a means for measuring the Installation location means及beauty itself for detecting the imaging direction, communicate respectively via a communication network between a plurality of surveillance cameras An image monitoring system comprising a management server capable of
Receiving information representing the detected imaging direction and position information representing the measured installation position from the plurality of monitoring cameras via the communication network,
Storing information representing the position and size of obstacles in the monitored area;
Assigning and setting a monitoring target area to each of the plurality of monitoring cameras based on the received information and position information indicating the imaging direction and the information indicating the position and size of the stored obstacle. An image monitoring method characterized by the above.   4. The priority order of the monitoring cameras to be imaged is set when there are a plurality of monitoring cameras in charge for each of the monitoring target areas of the plurality of assigned monitoring cameras. Image monitoring method.

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