JP7491219B2 - Sensor device for monitoring support system for monitored person, monitoring image storage method, and monitoring support system for monitored person - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a sensor device of a monitored person monitoring support system for supporting the monitoring of monitored persons, a monitoring image storage method for storing the monitoring images, and the monitored person monitoring support system.

In recent years, as we enter a super-aging society, technologies to complement the work of the nursing and care industries, etc., have been researched and developed, as disclosed, for example, in Patent Document 1.

The nurse call system disclosed in Patent Document 1 is a nurse call system having a nurse call handset that is installed on a bed and allows a patient to call a nurse, and a nurse call master unit that is installed in a nurse station and responds to calls made by the nurse call handset, and has a camera that captures an image of the patient on the bed from above the bed, and a state determination means that determines from the image captured by the camera whether the patient has sat up or left the bed and outputs a warning state generation signal, and the nurse call master unit has an alarm means that receives the warning state generation signal and performs an alarm operation. The nurse call master unit has a monitor that displays images, an image control unit that causes the monitor to display the image captured by the camera when the warning state generation signal is received, and an image storage unit that stores the images, and the image control unit stores the image captured by the camera in the image storage unit in accordance with the display of the image captured by the camera on the monitor.

The nurse call system disclosed in Patent Document 1 saves the image of the patient who made the call, allowing the patient's condition at the time of the call to be understood later, which is useful for nursing work (see paragraph [0030] of Patent Document 1). However, the nurse call system disclosed in Patent Document 1 saves the captured image only when it determines that at least one of the following has occurred: the patient has sat up or the patient has left the bed. For this reason, the nurse call system disclosed in Patent Document 1 has the disadvantage that if it fails to determine the occurrence, that is, if it is unable to determine the occurrence when it should have (in the case of a failure to report), the captured image that should have been saved is not saved. Also, in the nursing and care industries, there are cases where the condition of the patient, etc., is checked at a later date, even though there was no failure to report.

JP 2014-90913 A

The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned circumstances, and its purpose is to provide a sensor device, a surveillance image storage method, and said surveillance image storage support system for a monitored person that can store images at the time of occurrence while also storing images at the time of missed reports.

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a monitored person monitoring support system, its sensor device, and monitoring image storage method, which reflect one aspect of the present invention, detects a specified event related to a monitored person using a sensor device provided corresponding to the monitored person, notifies a central management device which manages the event, and notifies a terminal device of the event detected by the sensor device via the central management device, generates a video, and when the event is detected, transmits the generated video of a specified first time period including the time when the event was detected to the central management device as an event video, and stores the generated video as a saved video in a video storage unit having a storage capacity for storing video of a specified second time period longer than the first time period.

Advantages and features provided by one or more embodiments of the invention will be better understood from the detailed description given below and the accompanying drawings, which are given by way of example only and are not intended as a definition of the limits of the invention.

1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a monitored person monitoring support system in an embodiment. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a sensor device in the monitored person monitoring support system. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a management server device in the monitored person monitoring support system. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a configuration of an event video information table stored in the management server device. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a configuration of a stored video information table stored in the management server device. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an operation related to storage of a saved video in the sensor device. 10 is a flowchart showing an operation of the sensor device regarding transmission of a stored video. 11 is a sequence diagram showing an operation related to event notification in the monitored person monitoring support system. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an operation related to transmission of an event video in the sensor device.

One or more embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. However, the scope of the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. Configurations with the same reference numerals in each drawing indicate that they are the same configuration, and their description will be omitted as appropriate. In this specification, when referring to a general term, a reference numeral without a subscript is used, and when referring to an individual configuration, a reference numeral with a subscript is used.

The monitored person monitoring support system in the embodiment supports the monitoring of a monitor (user) who monitors a monitored person (a person to be monitored, a subject person) who is a monitoring target (a person to be watched) to be monitored (watched over). In this embodiment, the monitored person monitoring support system includes a sensor device that is provided corresponding to the monitored person and detects a predetermined event related to the monitored person, a central management device that is communicatively connected to the sensor device and receives a notification of the event detected by the sensor device and manages the event, and a terminal device that is communicatively connected to the central management device and receives a notification of the event detected by the sensor device via the central management device. In this embodiment, the monitored person monitoring support system includes an imaging unit that generates a video, a video transmission processing unit that transmits a video of a predetermined first time including the time when the event is detected, generated by the imaging unit, to the central management device as an event video, when the event is detected, and a video storage unit that has a storage capacity for storing a video of a predetermined second time longer than the first time, and stores the video generated by the imaging unit as a saved video. The terminal device may be one type of device, but in this embodiment, the terminal device is two types of devices, a fixed terminal device and a mobile terminal device. The main difference between the fixed terminal device and the mobile terminal device is that the fixed terminal device is operated in a fixed manner, while the mobile terminal device is carried and operated by a supervisor (user) such as a nurse or a caregiver, and the fixed terminal device and the mobile terminal device are substantially similar. As an example, a case in which the imaging unit, the video transmission processing unit, and the video storage unit are provided in the sensor device will be described in more detail below.

Figure 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of a monitored person monitoring support system in an embodiment. Figure 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of a sensor device in the monitored person monitoring support system. Figure 3 is a diagram showing the configuration of a management server device in the monitored person monitoring support system. Figure 4 is a diagram showing the configuration of an event video information table stored in the management server device. Figure 5 is a diagram showing the configuration of a saved video information table stored in the management server device.

The monitored person monitoring support system MS in the embodiment is a system that supports monitoring of a monitored person Ob, and includes, for example, as shown in FIG. 1, one or more sensor devices SU (SU-1 to SU-4), a management server device SV, a fixed terminal device SP, one or more mobile terminal devices TA (TA-1, TA-2), and a private branch exchange (PBX, Private Branch Exchange) CX, which are connected to each other via a wired or wireless network (network, communication line) NW such as a LAN (Local Area Network). The network NW may include relay devices such as repeaters, bridges, and routers that relay communication signals. In the example shown in FIG. 1, the multiple sensor devices SU-1 to SU-4, the management server device SV, the fixed terminal device SP, the multiple mobile terminal devices TA-1 and TA-2, and the private branch exchange CX are connected to each other so as to be able to communicate with each other by a wired and wireless mixed LAN (such as a LAN conforming to the IEEE802.11 standard) NW including a line concentrator (hub) LS of an L2 switch and an access point AP. More specifically, the multiple sensor devices SU-1 to SU-4, the management server device SV, the fixed terminal device SP, and the private branch exchange CX are connected to the line concentrator LS, and the multiple mobile terminal devices TA-1 and TA-2 are connected to the line concentrator LS via the access point AP. The network NW constitutes a so-called intranet by using a group of Internet protocols such as TCP (Transmission control protocol) and IP (Internet protocol).

The private branch exchange (line switching device) CX is connected to the network NW and controls internal telephone calls such as outgoing, incoming and outgoing calls between the mobile terminal devices TA to implement internal telephone calls between the mobile terminal devices TA, and is connected to an outside telephone set TL, such as a landline telephone or a mobile phone, via a public telephone network PN, such as a landline telephone network or a mobile phone network, and controls outside telephone calls such as outgoing, incoming and outgoing calls between the outside telephone set TL and the mobile terminal device TA to implement outside telephone calls between the outside telephone set TL and the mobile terminal device TA. The private branch exchange CX is, for example, a digital exchange or an IP-PBX (Internet Protocol Private Branch eXchange).

The monitored person monitoring support system MS is disposed at an appropriate location according to the monitored person Ob. The monitored person (person to be watched) Ob is, for example, a person who needs nursing care due to illness or injury, a person who needs nursing care due to a decline in physical ability, or a person living alone. In particular, from the viewpoint of enabling early detection and early response, it is preferable that the monitored person Ob is a person who needs to be detected when a specific inconvenient event such as an abnormal state occurs to him/her. For this reason, the monitored person monitoring support system MS is suitably disposed in buildings such as hospitals, elderly welfare facilities, and dwellings according to the type of monitored person Ob. In the example shown in FIG. 1, the monitored person monitoring support system MS is disposed in a building of a nursing care facility having multiple rooms RM in which multiple monitored persons Ob reside, and multiple rooms such as a nurse's station.

The sensor device SU is equipped with a communication function for communicating with other devices SV, SP, and TA via the network NW, notifies the management server device SV of a predetermined event (phenomenon) related to the monitored person Ob, transmits an event video to the management server device SV, and stores the saved video described below. The predetermined event (phenomenon) is preferably a predetermined event that requires a response, for example, in this embodiment, a predetermined behavior and a nurse call in advance in the monitored person Ob. For this reason, in this embodiment, the sensor device SU detects a predetermined behavior in the monitored person Ob and notifies (transmits) the detection result to the management server device SV as an example of the predetermined event, receives a nurse call and notifies (transmits) the nurse call to the management server device SV as another example of the predetermined event, performs a voice call with the terminal devices SP and TA, and generates an image including a video and distributes the video to the terminal devices SP and TA. Such a sensor device SU includes, for example, as shown in Figure 2, an imaging unit 11, a sound input/output unit 12, a nurse call reception operation unit 13, a sensor side control processing unit (SU control processing unit) 14, a sensor side communication interface unit (SU communication IF unit) 15, and a sensor side memory unit (SU memory unit) 16.

The imaging unit 11 is connected to the SU control processing unit 14 and is a device that generates images (image data) under the control of the SU control processing unit 14. The images include still images (still image data) and videos (video data). The imaging unit 11 is arranged to be able to monitor the space (location space, in the example shown in FIG. 1, the living room (room) RM at the installation location) where the monitored person Ob, who is the monitoring target to be monitored, is scheduled to be located, and the imaging unit 11 images the location space as the imaging target from above, generates an image (image data) of the imaging target overlooking the imaging target, and outputs the image (target image) of the imaging target to the SU control processing unit 14. Preferably, since there is a high probability that the entire monitored person Ob, who is the monitoring target, can be imaged, the imaging unit 11 is arranged so that the imaging target can be imaged from directly above the predetermined head planned position (usually the pillow arrangement position) where the head of the monitored person Ob is scheduled to be located in the bedding (e.g., a bed, etc.) on which the monitored person Ob lies. Alternatively, for example, since there is a high probability that the entire location space can be imaged, the imaging unit 11 is disposed at an approximately central position on the ceiling surface. The sensor device SU acquires an image, preferably a video, of the monitored person Ob captured from above the monitored person Ob, preferably directly above the intended head position or approximately at the central position on the ceiling surface, by the imaging unit 11.

Such an imaging unit 11 may be a device that generates a visible light image, but in this embodiment, it is a device that generates an infrared image so that the monitored person Ob can be monitored even in a relatively dark place. In this embodiment, such an imaging unit 11 is, for example, a digital infrared camera that includes an imaging optical system that forms an infrared optical image of the imaging target on a predetermined imaging plane, an area image sensor that is arranged with its light receiving surface aligned with the imaging plane and converts the infrared optical image of the imaging target into an electrical signal, and an image processing unit that generates image data, preferably video data, which is data representing the infrared image of the imaging target by image processing the output of the area image sensor. In this embodiment, the imaging optical system of the imaging unit 11 is preferably a wide-angle optical system (a so-called wide-angle lens (including a fisheye lens)) that has an angle of view that can capture the entire living room RM in which it is arranged.

The sound input/output unit 12 is a circuit that inputs and outputs sound. That is, the sound input/output unit 12 is a circuit that is connected to the SU control processing unit 14, and generates and outputs a sound corresponding to an electrical signal representing the sound according to the control of the SU control processing unit 14, and is a circuit that acquires external sound and inputs it to the sensor device SU. The sound input/output unit 12 is configured to include, for example, a speaker that converts an electrical signal (sound data) of sound into a mechanical vibration signal of sound (acoustic signal), and a microphone that converts a mechanical vibration signal of sound in the audible range into an electrical signal. The sound input/output unit 12 outputs an electrical signal representing an external sound to the SU control processing unit 14, and also converts an electrical signal input from the SU control processing unit 14 into a mechanical vibration signal of sound and outputs it.

The nurse call reception operation unit 13 is connected to the SU control processing unit 14 and is a switch circuit, such as a push button switch, for inputting a nurse call to the sensor device SU. The nurse call reception operation unit 13 may be connected to the SU control processing unit 14 by wire, or may be connected to the SU control processing unit 14 by short-range wireless communication, such as the Bluetooth (registered trademark) standard.

The SU communication IF unit 15 is a communication circuit connected to the SU control processing unit 14 and for communicating according to the control of the SU control processing unit 14. The SU communication IF unit 15 generates a communication signal containing data to be transferred input from the SU control processing unit 14 according to a communication protocol used in the network NW of the monitored person monitoring support system MS, and transmits the generated communication signal to other devices SV, SP, and TA via the network NW. The SU communication IF unit 15 receives communication signals from other devices SV, SP, and TA via the network NW, extracts data from the received communication signals, converts the extracted data into data in a format that can be processed by the SU control processing unit 14, and outputs the data to the SU control processing unit 14. The SU communication IF unit 15 is configured with a communication interface circuit that complies with the IEEE 802.11 standard, for example.

The SU memory unit 16 is a circuit that is connected to the SU control processing unit 14 and stores various predetermined programs and various predetermined data in accordance with the control of the SU control processing unit 14. The various predetermined programs include, for example, a SU control program that controls each of the units 11-13, 15, and 16 of the sensor device SU according to the function of each unit, and a control processing program such as a SU monitoring processing program that executes predetermined information processing related to monitoring of the monitored person Ob. The SU monitoring processing program includes a behavior detection processing program that detects a predetermined behavior of the monitored person Ob and notifies the predetermined terminal device SP, TA via the management server device SV of the detection result as an example of the predetermined event (phenomenon), a nurse call processing program that notifies the management server device SV of a nurse call received by the nurse call reception operation unit 13 as another example of the predetermined event and performs voice communication with the terminal device SP, TA by using the SU sound input/output unit 12, etc., a streaming processing program that distributes a video generated by the imaging unit 11 to the terminal device SP, TA that requested the video by streaming, and a program that transmits a video generated by the imaging unit 11 to the terminal device SP, TA that requested the video. The SU video storage processing program includes an SU video storage processing program for storing an image of the event in the SU storage unit 16, a video transmission processing program for transmitting, when the event (in this embodiment, a specific type of event set in advance among the multiple types) is detected, a video of a predetermined first time period including the time point at which the specific type of event is detected to the management server device SV as an event video, a tag information assignment processing program for associating, when the remaining type of event excluding the specific type among the multiple types is detected, predetermined tag information related to the detected event with a saved video stored in the SU storage unit, which will be described later, and an SU clock program for measuring time in years, months, days, hours, minutes, and seconds. The various predetermined data include a sensor device identifier (sensor ID) which is an identifier for specifying and identifying the sensor device SU of the sensor device itself, a communication address of the management server device SV, data required for executing each program, such as a video generated by the imaging unit 11, and the like. The SU storage unit 16 includes, for example, a ROM (Read Only Memory) which is a nonvolatile storage element, an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory) which is a rewritable nonvolatile storage element, etc. The SU storage unit 16 includes a RAM (Random Access Memory) which serves as a working memory of the SU control processing unit 14 and stores data generated during execution of the predetermined program, etc. In this embodiment, the SU storage unit 16 functionally includes first and second ring buffer storage units 161 and 162 which are ring buffers.

The first ring buffer storage unit 161 is a so-called ring buffer that has a storage capacity (first storage capacity) for storing a video of a predetermined first time (video of a first time length) and stores the video generated by the imaging unit 11. For this reason, each frame (each frame data) in the video generated by the imaging unit 11 is stored in the first ring buffer storage unit 161 in the order of generation, from the first address (first first address) to the last address (first last address), and when the first last address is reached, it is returned to the first first address and stored. Therefore, after the first time has elapsed since being stored in the first ring buffer storage unit 161, the oldest (oldest) stored frame of the video is overwritten with the frame of the video generated by the imaging unit 11 at this time point and is automatically erased. The first time is set in advance as appropriate, for example, 30 seconds, 60 seconds (1 minute), 2 minutes, 3 minutes, etc.

The second ring buffer storage unit 162 is a so-called ring buffer that has a storage capacity (second storage capacity) for storing a video of a predetermined second time (video of a second length) longer than the first time, and stores the video generated by the imaging unit 11 as a saved video. For this reason, each frame (each frame data) in the video generated by the imaging unit 11 is stored in the second ring buffer storage unit 162 in the order of generation, from the first address (second first address) to the last address (second last address), and when the second last address is reached, it is returned to the second first address and stored. Therefore, after the second time has elapsed since it was stored in the second ring buffer storage unit 162, the oldest (oldest) stored video frame is overwritten with the video frame stored at this time and automatically erased. The second time is appropriately set in advance, for example, 1 day, 3 days, 6 days, etc., so that the condition of the patient, etc. can be confirmed by video at a later date. The video generated by the imaging unit 11 may be stored in the second ring buffer memory unit 162 directly from the imaging unit 11 by the control processing unit 14, but in this embodiment, the video stored in the first ring buffer memory unit 161 by the control processing unit 14 is stored in the second ring buffer memory unit 162.

The first and second ring buffer memory units 161, 162 may each be physically configured by arranging memory elements in a ring shape, but since this is not practical, the first ring buffer memory unit 161 is logically configured by reserving a memory area (first memory area) for the first ring buffer memory unit 161 in RAM with a first memory capacity and linking the first start address and first end address of this first memory area, and similarly, the second ring buffer memory unit 162 is logically configured by reserving a memory area (second memory area) for the second ring buffer memory unit 162 in RAM with a second memory capacity and linking the second start address and end address of this second memory area.

The SU control processing unit 14 is a circuit that controls each of the units 11 to 13, 15, and 16 of the sensor device SU according to the function of each unit, notifies the management server device SV of a specific event (phenomenon) related to the monitored person Ob, transmits an event video to the management server device SV, and stores the saved video. More specifically, in this embodiment, the SU control processing unit 14 detects a specific behavior of the monitored person Ob and notifies (notifies, transmits) the detection result to the management server device SV as an example of the specific event, receives a nurse call and notifies (notifies, transmits) the nurse call to the management server device SV as another example of the specific event, performs voice calls with the terminal devices SP and TA, generates an image including a video and distributes the video to the terminal devices SP and TA, transmits an event video to the management server device SV when a specific type of event is detected, and stores the saved video. The SU control processing unit 14 is configured to include, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and its peripheral circuits. By executing the control processing program, the SU control processing unit 14 functionally includes a sensor side control unit (SU control unit) 141, a behavior detection processing unit 142, a nurse call processing unit 143, a streaming processing unit 144, a sensor side moving image storage processing unit (SU moving image storage processing unit) 145, a moving image transmission processing unit 146, a tag information assignment processing unit 147, and a sensor side clock unit (SU clock unit) 148.

The SU control unit 141 controls each of the units 11 to 13, 15, and 16 of the sensor device SU according to the function of each unit, and is responsible for the overall control of the sensor device SU.

The behavior detection processing unit 142 detects a predetermined behavior of the monitored person Ob and notifies the management server device SV of the detection result as an example of the predetermined event. More specifically, in this embodiment, the predetermined behavior is, for example, four behaviors: getting up when the monitored person Ob gets up, getting out of bed when the monitored person Ob leaves the bedding, falling off the bedding when the monitored person Ob falls down, and falling over when the monitored person Ob falls down. The behavior detection processing unit 142 detects the head of the monitored person Ob based on, for example, the target image captured by the imaging unit 11, and detects the getting up, getting out of bed, falling over, and falling over of the monitored person Ob based on the time change in the size of the head of the monitored person Ob detected. More specifically, first, the location area of the bedding BD, the first threshold value Th1, the second threshold value Th2, and the third threshold value Th3 are stored in advance in the SU storage unit 16 as one of the various predetermined data. The first threshold Th1 is a threshold for distinguishing between the head size in a lying position and the head size in a sitting position in the area where the bedding BD is located. The second threshold Th2 is a threshold for distinguishing whether the head size is in a standing position in the living room RM excluding the area where the bedding BD is located. The third threshold Th3 is a threshold for distinguishing whether the head size is in a lying position in the living room RM excluding the area where the bedding BD is located. Then, the behavior detection processing unit 142 extracts a moving object area as the area of the person of the monitored person Ob from the target image by, for example, a background difference method or a frame difference method. Next, the behavior detection processing unit 142 extracts the head area of the monitored person Ob from the extracted moving object area by, for example, a circular or elliptical Hough transform, by, for example, a pattern matching using a head model prepared in advance, or by, for example, a neural network trained for head detection. Next, the behavior detection processing unit 142 detects getting up, getting out of bed, falling over, and falling off the bed from the extracted position and size of the head. For example, when the extracted position of the head is within the area where the bedding BD is located and the extracted size of the head changes over time from the size of a lying posture to the size of a sitting posture by using the first threshold value Th1, the behavior detection processing unit 142 determines that the person has gotten up and detects that person has gotten up. For example, when the extracted position of the head changes over time from within the area where the bedding BD is located to outside the area where the bedding is located and the extracted size of the head changes over time from a certain size to the size of a standing posture by using the second threshold value Th2, the behavior detection processing unit 142 determines that the person has gotten out of bed and detects that person has gotten out of bed. For example, when the extracted position of the head changes over time from within the area where the bedding BD is located to outside the area where the bedding BD is located, and the extracted size of the head changes over time from a certain size to the size of a lying position by using the third threshold value Th3, the behavior detection processing unit 142 determines that a fall has occurred and detects the fall. For example, when the extracted position of the head is within the room RM excluding the area where the bedding BD is located, and the extracted size of the head changes over time from a certain size to the size of a lying position by using the third threshold value Th3, the behavior detection processing unit 142 determines that a fall has occurred and detects the fall.

When the predetermined behavior is detected in this manner, the behavior detection processing unit 142 notifies the management server device SV of a communication signal (first event notification communication signal) for notifying the event, which contains event information (event information) representing the contents of the predetermined event (event) related to the monitored person Ob, via the SU communication IF unit 15. More specifically, the behavior detection processing unit 142 transmits a first event notification communication signal containing the sensor ID of the device itself, event information representing the contents of the event, the time when the predetermined behavior was detected (detection time), and the target image used to detect the predetermined behavior, to the management server device SV via the SU communication IF unit 15. In this embodiment, the event information is one or more of getting up, getting out of bed, falling, falling down, and nurse call (NC), and here, the behavior detection processing unit 142 contains one or more of the detected getting up, getting out of bed, falling down, and falling down in the first event notification communication signal as the event information. The image may be at least one of a still image and a video, and in this embodiment, a still image is first notified, and the video is delivered in response to a user request. Note that the video may be delivered first, or the still image and the video may be transmitted, and the still image and the video may be displayed on the terminal devices SP and TA by splitting the screen.

When the nurse call reception operation unit 13 receives a nurse call, the nurse call processing unit 143 notifies the management server device SV of the first event notification communication signal containing the nurse call as another example of the specified event, and performs a voice call between the terminal device SP, TA by using the sound input/output unit 12, etc. More specifically, when the nurse call reception operation unit 13 is operated, the nurse call processing unit 143 transmits the sensor ID of the device itself, the time when the nurse call was detected (detection time), and a first event notification communication signal containing the nurse call as the event information to the management server device SV via the SU communication IF unit 15. Then, the nurse call processing unit 143 uses the sound input/output unit 12, etc. to perform a voice call between the terminal device SP, TA, for example, by VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol).

When a request for video distribution is received from a fixed terminal device SP or a mobile terminal device TA via the SU communication IF unit 15, the streaming processing unit 144 distributes the video (e.g., live video) generated by the imaging unit 11 to the requested fixed terminal device SP or mobile terminal device TA via the SU communication IF unit 15 in a streaming playback manner.

The SU video storage processing unit 145 stores the video generated by the imaging unit 11 in the SU storage unit 16. More specifically, the SU video storage processing unit 145 stores the video generated by the imaging unit 11 in the first ring buffer storage unit 161 of the SU storage unit 16, and stores the video generated by the imaging unit 11 in the second ring buffer storage unit 162 of the SU storage unit 16 as a saved video. More specifically, the SU video storage processing unit 145 first stores each frame (each frame data) in the video generated by the imaging unit 11 in the order of generation from the first start address to the first end address of the first ring buffer storage unit 161, and when the first end address is reached, returns to the first start address and stores it. Then, the SU video storage processing unit 145 reads out the video of the first time stored in the first ring buffer storage unit 161 every time the first time elapses, and stores the read video of the first time in the second ring buffer storage unit 162 as the saved video. That is, the SU moving image storage processing unit 145 stores each frame of the moving image generated by the imaging unit 11 in the order of generation from the first start address to the first final address of the first ring buffer storage unit 161, and when this first final address is reached, stores the moving image of the first time stored in the first ring buffer storage unit 161 as the saved moving image in the second ring buffer storage unit 162. Therefore, in the second ring buffer storage unit 162, the moving image of the first time stored in the first ring buffer storage unit 161 is stored sequentially from the second start address to the second final address of the second ring buffer storage unit 162 every time the first time elapses, and when this second final address is reached, it is returned to and stored at the second start address.

When the video transmission processing unit 146 detects the event, which in this embodiment is a specific type of event that is set in advance among the multiple types, the video transmission processing unit 146 transmits a video of a predetermined first time period including the time when the specific type of event is detected, generated by the imaging unit 11, to the management server device SV as an event video. As described above, in this embodiment, the multiple types of the event are getting up, getting out of bed, falling, falling over, and nurse call. The specific type is appropriately set in advance from these. In this embodiment, the importance of the event is taken into consideration, and falling and falling over are set as the specific type. The event video may be a video (past) that goes back by the first time from the time when the specific type of event is detected (detection time), but in this embodiment, it includes a video (pre-detection video) generated by the imaging unit 11 before the time when the event is detected, and a video (post-detection video) generated by the imaging unit 11 after the time when the event is detected. The time lengths of the pre-detection video and the post-detection video may be the same or different. In one example, when the first time is 60 seconds, each time length is 30 seconds, or from the viewpoint of emphasizing the process leading up to the event, the time length of the pre-detection video is 45 seconds and the time length of the post-detection video is 15 seconds, or from the viewpoint of emphasizing confirmation of the state of the monitored person Ob and the monitor after the event, the time length of the pre-detection video is 15 seconds and the time length of the post-detection video is 45 seconds. Therefore, in this embodiment, when a fall is detected by the behavior detection processing unit 142, the video transmission processing unit 146 reads out the video of the first time stored in the first ring buffer storage unit 161 after a predetermined seventh time (30 seconds, 45 seconds, or 15 seconds in the above example) that is shorter than the first time has elapsed from the time of detection, and transmits the read video of the first time to the management server device SV as the event video. Then, when the behavior detection processing unit 142 detects a fall, the video transmission processing unit 146 reads out the video of the first time stored in the first ring buffer storage unit 161 after the seventh time has elapsed from the time of detection, and transmits this read video of the first time as the event video to the management server device SV. In transmitting this event video, the sensor ID of the own device, event information of the event resulting from the transmission of the event video, the detection time of the event, and a communication signal (event video notification communication signal) containing the event video are transmitted to the management server device SV.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the video transmission processing unit 146 transmits the saved video stored in the second ring buffer storage unit 162 to the management server device SV. More specifically, the video transmission processing unit 146 reads out the saved video of the second time stored in the second ring buffer storage unit 162 every time the second time elapses, and transmits the read saved video of the second time to the management server device SV. That is, every time the first time elapses, the video of the first time stored in the first ring buffer storage unit 161 is stored sequentially from the second start address to the second end address of the second ring buffer storage unit 162, and when the second end address is reached, the video transmission processing unit 146 reads out the saved video of the second time stored in the second ring buffer storage unit 162, and transmits the read saved video of the second time to the management server device SV. In transmitting this saved video, a communication signal (saved video notification communication signal) containing the sensor ID of the own device and the saved video of the second time is transmitted to the management server device SV.

When the tag information assignment processing unit 147 detects an event of the remaining type excluding the specific type among the multiple types, it associates predetermined tag information related to the detected event with the stored video stored in the SU memory unit 16. As described above, in this embodiment, the specific type is a fall and a tumble, so the remaining types are getting up, getting out of bed, and a nurse call. The tag information is set appropriately in advance, and in this embodiment, for example, it is the event information and detection time of the detected event. Therefore, when getting up is detected by the behavior detection processing unit 142, the tag information assignment processing unit 147 associates the getting up and the detection time with the stored video as the tag information, when getting out of bed is detected by the behavior detection processing unit 142, it associates the getting out of bed and the detection time with the stored video as the tag information, and when a nurse call is detected by the nurse call processing unit 143, it associates the nurse call and the detection time with the stored video as the tag information. In the association of the tag information, for example, an electronic file storing the tag information is stored in the SU storage unit 16, and when the saved video of the second time stored in the second ring buffer storage unit 162 is transmitted to the management server device SV as described above, the electronic file of the tag information is further included in the saved video notification communication signal, and after the saved video notification communication signal is transmitted, the electronic file of the tag information is erased from the SU storage unit 16. Alternatively, for example, the tag information is incorporated into the data of the saved video and stored. Video data that can store such metadata (tag information in this embodiment) is, for example, in MP4 format.

The SU clock unit 148 measures time in terms of year, month, day, hour, minute and second.

FIG. 1 shows, as an example, first to fourth sensor devices SU-1 to SU-4, with the first sensor device SU-1 being arranged in a room RM-1 (not shown) of Mr. A Ob-1, who is one of the monitored persons Ob, the second sensor device SU-2 being arranged in a room RM-2 (not shown) of Mr. B Ob-2, who is another of the monitored persons Ob, the third sensor device SU-3 being arranged in a room RM-3 (not shown) of Mr. C Ob-3, who is another of the monitored persons Ob, and the fourth sensor device SU-4 being arranged in a room RM-4 (not shown) of Mr. D Ob-4, who is another of the monitored persons Ob.

Note that this embodiment is an embodiment in which the first time, the predetermined third time that is equal to or greater than the first time and less than the second time, and the predetermined fourth time that is equal to or less than the third time are the same first time, and the first ring buffer storage unit 161 has a storage capacity for storing a video of the predetermined third time that is equal to or greater than the first time and less than the second time, and corresponds to an example of a storage unit of a ring buffer that stores a video generated by the imaging unit. The second ring buffer storage unit 162 has a storage capacity for storing a video of a predetermined second time that is longer than the first time, and corresponds to an example of a video storage unit that stores the video generated by the imaging unit as a saved video. The SU video storage processing unit 145 corresponds to an example of a video storage processing unit that reads out the video of the fourth time stored in the storage unit of the ring buffer every time the predetermined fourth time that is equal to or less than the third time elapses, and stores the read video of the fourth time in the video storage unit as the saved video.

The management server device SV has a communication function for communicating with other devices SU, TA, SP via the network NW, and upon receiving notification of the specified event from the sensor device SU, it manages information relating to the monitoring of the monitored person Ob (monitoring information (in this embodiment, for example, the specified event (the type of specified behavior detected by the sensor device SU or a nurse call received by the sensor device SU), images (still images and videos) of the monitored person Ob, and the time of detection, etc.)), notifies (re-notifies, re-alerts, transmits) the specified event to specified terminal devices SP and TA, provides data in response to requests from clients (terminal devices SP, TA, etc. in this embodiment) to the clients, and is a device that manages the entire monitored person monitoring support system MS. In this embodiment, the management server device SV also manages event videos and stored videos received from the sensor device SU. Such a management server device SV, for example, as shown in Figure 3, has a server side communication interface unit (SV communication IF unit) 21, a server side control processing unit (SV control processing unit) 22, and a server side memory unit (SV memory unit) 23.

The SV communication IF unit 21, like the SU communication IF unit 15, is connected to the SV control processing unit 22 and is a communication circuit for communicating according to the control of the SV control processing unit 22. The SV communication IF unit 21 is configured to include, for example, a communication interface circuit that complies with the IEEE 802.11 standard or the like.

The SV storage unit 23 is connected to the SV control processing unit 22 and is a circuit that stores various predetermined programs and various predetermined data according to the control of the SV control processing unit 22. The various predetermined programs include, for example, an SV control program that controls each of the units 21 and 23 of the management server device SV according to the function of each unit, a monitoring processing program that executes predetermined information processing related to monitoring the monitored person Ob, an SV video storage processing program that executes predetermined storage processing related to storage (recording) of the event video and the saved video received from the sensor device SU, and a control processing program such as an SV clock program that measures time in years, months, days, hours, minutes, and seconds. The various predetermined data include a server identifier (server ID) for identifying the management server device SV of the device itself and identifying the management server device SV, the monitoring information of the monitored person Ob, inter-device information representing information between the devices SU, SP, and TA such as the notification destination of the predetermined event (event), sensor information related to the sensor device SU, terminal information related to the terminal devices SP and TA, and data necessary for executing each program such as the event video and the saved video. In order to store this monitoring information, inter-device information, sensor information, terminal information, event video, and saved video, the SV memory unit 23 functionally comprises a monitoring information memory unit 231, an inter-device information memory unit 232, a sensor information memory unit 233, a terminal information memory unit 234, an event video memory unit 235, and a saved video memory unit 236.

The SV monitoring information storage unit 231 stores the monitoring information of the monitored person Ob transmitted and received between each of the devices SU, SP, and TA. More specifically, in this embodiment, the SV monitoring information storage unit 231 stores the sensor ID, event information (event information, in this embodiment, waking up, getting out of bed, falling, falling over, and nurse call), detection time, target image, communication address of the sensor device SU as the acquisition destination of the live video, and the presence or absence of action (presence or absence of acceptance of action) in association with each other based on each information contained in the communication signal such as the first event notification communication signal as the monitoring information. The presence or absence of action is information indicating whether the terminal devices SP and TA have accepted the intention of the monitor who handles the terminal devices SP and TA to take action (response, treatment, measures) for the event information contained in the communication signal received by the terminal devices SP and TA.

In this embodiment, the inter-device information storage unit 232 stores, as the inter-device information, the correspondence (notification destination correspondence) between the sensor ID which is the sender and the terminal ID which is the destination (re-notification destination), which indicates the destination (re-notification destination, re-alert destination, transmission destination) of the first event notification communication signal etc. transmitted from the sensor device SU, and the correspondence (communication address correspondence) between the ID (sensor ID, terminal ID) of each device SU, SP, TA and its communication address. The terminal ID is a terminal identifier for specifying the terminal devices SP, TA and identifying the terminal devices SP, TA.

In addition, the sensor ID, server ID and terminal ID may each be, for example, a serial number consisting of a predetermined symbol string, or may be, for example, a communication address (in which case the communication address correspondence can be omitted).

The sensor information storage unit 233 stores the sensor information. In this embodiment, the sensor information is information about the sensor device SU, and is information that associates the sensor ID of the sensor device SU with the name of the monitored person Ob.

In this embodiment, the terminal information storage unit 234 stores, as the terminal information, login monitor information indicating the monitor (user) (monitor operating the terminal device SP or TA) who is logged in to the terminal device SP or TA, and monitor work information indicating the work status of the monitor (work shift, work hours), etc.

The event video storage unit 235 stores the event video. In this embodiment, the event video storage unit 235 stores an electronic file of the event video and predetermined attribute information (event video attribute information) for the event video. In this embodiment, the event video attribute information is stored in the event video storage unit 235 in a table format as shown in FIG. 4, for example. The event video attribute information table IT shown in FIG. 4 includes a sensor ID field 2351, an event field 2352, a detection time field 2353, and an event video file name field 2354 that register the sensor ID, event information, and detection time contained in the event video notification communication signal, as well as the file name (event video file name) of the event video contained in the event video notification communication signal, and has a record for each event video (event video file name). By referring to the event video attribute information, the monitored person (sensor ID), the type of the detected event (event information), and the detection time can be recognized (who, what event, and when it occurred can be recognized). In addition, in place of the detection time, the reception time of the received event video notifying communication signal may be registered in the detection time field 2353 .

The saved video storage unit 236 stores the saved video. In this embodiment, the saved video storage unit 236 stores an electronic file of the saved video and predetermined attribute information (saved video attribute information) for the saved video. In this embodiment, the saved video attribute information is stored in the saved video storage unit 236 in a table format as shown in FIG. 5, for example. The saved video attribute information table LT shown in FIG. 5 includes a sensor ID field 2361 and a saved video file name field 2364 that register the sensor ID contained in the saved video notification communication signal and the file name (saved video file name) of the saved video contained in the saved video notification communication signal, and has a record for each saved video (saved video file name). In this embodiment, the case where tag information is contained in the saved video notification communication signal is taken into consideration, and the saved video attribute information table LT further includes an event field 2362 and a detection time field 2363 that register the event information and detection time in the tag information contained in the saved video notification communication signal. In this embodiment, in order to erase the stored video after a predetermined time has elapsed, if the tag information is not included in the stored video notification communication signal, the reception time of the stored video notification communication signal is registered in the detection time field 2363. Even if the tag information is included in the stored video notification communication signal, the reception time of the stored video notification communication signal may be registered in the detection time field 2363 instead of the detection time. By referring to the stored video attribute information, the monitored person (sensor ID) related to the stored video and the reception time can be recognized, and if tag information is included in the stored video notification communication signal, the type of detected event (event information) related to the stored video and the detection time can be recognized.

The SV control processing unit 22 is a circuit for controlling each unit 21, 23 of the management server device SV according to the function of each unit, managing monitoring information regarding monitoring of the monitored person Ob when the specified event is notified from the sensor device SU, notifying (re-notifying, re-altering, sending) the specified event to the specified terminal device SP, TA, providing the client with data according to the client's request, and managing the entire monitored person monitoring support system MS. In this embodiment, the SV control processing unit 22 also manages the event video and the stored video received from the sensor device SU. The SV control processing unit 22 is configured with, for example, a CPU and its peripheral circuits. The SV control processing unit 22 is functionally equipped with a server side control unit (SV control unit) 221, a monitoring processing unit 222, a server side video storage processing unit (SV video storage processing unit) 223, and a server side clock unit (SV clock unit) 224 by executing the control processing program.

The SV control unit 221 controls each of the units 21, 23 of the management server device SV according to the function of each unit, and is responsible for the overall control of the management server device SV.

When the monitoring processing unit 222 receives a notification of the predetermined event from the sensor device SU, it manages monitoring information related to the monitoring of the monitored person Ob and notifies the predetermined terminal device SP, TA of the predetermined event. More specifically, when the monitoring processing unit 222 receives the first event notification communication signal from the sensor device SU, it stores (records) the monitoring information related to the monitoring of the monitored person Ob contained in the received first event notification communication signal in the SV monitoring information storage unit 231. The monitoring processing unit 222 selects (searches) a notification destination (re-notification destination, transfer destination, transmission destination) corresponding to the sensor device SU that transmitted the received first event notification communication signal from the notification destination correspondence relationship stored in the inter-device information storage unit 232, generates a second event notification communication signal based on these selection results, and transmits the generated second event notification communication signal through the SV communication IF unit 21. The selection (search process) of the notification destination terminal device SP, TA is performed based on the sensor ID corresponding to the sensor device SU that transmitted the received first event notification communication signal. When the event information contained in the first event notification communication signal is the predetermined behavior (one or more of getting up, getting out of bed, falling, and tipping over), the second event notification communication signal contains the sensor ID, event information, and target image contained in the first event notification communication signal, as well as a communication address corresponding to the sensor device SU having the sensor ID contained in the first event notification communication signal as a download destination for the video.When the event information contained in the first event notification communication signal is the nurse call, the second event notification communication signal contains the sensor ID and event information contained in the first event notification communication signal.

The SV video storage processing unit 223 performs specified storage processing related to the storage (recording) of event videos and saved videos received from the sensor device SU.

More specifically, first, when an event video notification communication signal is received, the SV video storage processing unit 223 stores the event video contained in the received event video notification communication signal in the event video storage unit 235 of the SV storage unit 23. If the electronic file of the event video does not have a file name (event video file name), the SV video storage processing unit 223 stores the event video in the event video storage unit 235 by giving it a predetermined file name (for example, a file name consisting of a code sequence indicating that it is an event video and a serial number assigned in sequence from the first event video received). Then, the SV video storage processing unit 223 adds a new record to the event video attribute information table IT stored in the event video storage unit 235, registers the sensor ID, event information and detection time contained in the received event video notification communication signal in the sensor ID field 2351, event field 2352 and detection time field 2353 of this added record, and registers the event video file name of the event video contained in the received event video notification communication signal in the event video file name field 2354 of this added record.

On the other hand, when a saved video notification communication signal is received, the SV video storage processing unit 223 stores the saved video contained in the received saved video notification communication signal in the saved video storage unit 236 of the SV storage unit 23. If the electronic file of the saved video does not have a file name (saved video file name), the SV video storage processing unit 223 stores the saved video in the saved video storage unit 236 with a predetermined file name (for example, a file name consisting of a code sequence indicating that it is a saved video and a serial number assigned in order from the first event video received). The SV video storage processing unit 223 then adds a new record to the saved video attribute information table LT stored in the saved video storage unit 236, registers the sensor ID contained in the received event video notification communication signal in the sensor ID field 2351 of the added record, and registers the saved video file name of the saved video contained in the received saved video notification communication signal in the saved video file name field 2364 of the added record. Then, if the received event video notification communication signal contains tag information, the SV video storage processing unit 223 registers the event information and detection time in the tag information contained in the received stored video notification communication signal in the event field 2362 and detection time field 2363, respectively, of the newly added record, and if the received event video notification communication signal does not contain tag information, the SV video storage processing unit 223 registers the reception time of the received stored video notification communication signal in the detection time field 2363 of the newly added record.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the SV video storage processing unit 223 erases the event video from the event video storage unit 235 after a predetermined fifth time, which is longer than the second time, has elapsed from the reception time of the event video received from the sensor device SU or the detection time of the event related to the event video. More specifically, when a preset time in a day, such as midnight when the date changes, the SV video storage processing unit 223 refers to the detection time or reception time registered in the detection time field 2353 in the event video attribute information table IT, and if the reference result shows that the fifth time has elapsed from the detection time or reception time registered in the detection time field 2353, the electronic file of the event video having the event video file name registered in the event video file name field 2354 in this record is erased from the event video storage unit 235, and the record is deleted (erased) from the event video attribute information table IT. The fifth time is appropriately set in advance, for example, one month, three months, six months, etc., taking into account the storage period of the event video, etc. Then, the SV moving image storage processing unit 223 erases the saved moving image stored in the saved moving image storage unit 236 from the saved moving image storage unit 236 after a predetermined sixth time, which is longer than the second time, has elapsed from the reception time of the saved moving image received from the sensor device SU or the detection time of an event related to the saved moving image. More specifically, when a preset time in a day, such as midnight when the date changes, the SV moving image storage processing unit 223 refers to the detection time or reception time registered in the detection time field 2363 in the saved moving image attribute information table LT, and if the result of this reference shows that the sixth time has elapsed from the detection time or reception time registered in the detection time field 2363, the SV moving image storage processing unit 223 erases the electronic file of the saved moving image having the saved moving image file name registered in the saved moving image file name field 2364 of this record from the saved moving image storage unit 236, and deletes (erases) this record from the saved moving image attribute information table LT. The sixth time is appropriately set in advance to, for example, one month, three months, six months, etc., taking into consideration the storage period of the saved moving image, etc. The fifth time and the sixth time may be the same as each other, or may be different from each other.

The SV clock unit 224 measures time in terms of year, month, day, hour, minute and second.

As shown by dashed lines in Figure 3, the management server device SV may further include, as necessary, a server-side input unit (SV input unit) 24 connected to the SV control processing unit 22 for inputting, for example, various commands and various data, a server-side output unit (SV output unit) 25 for outputting the various commands and various data input to the SV input unit 24 and monitoring information regarding the monitoring of the monitored person Ob, and a server-side interface unit (SVIF unit) 26 for inputting and outputting data between external devices.

Such a management server device SV can be configured, for example, by a computer with communication capabilities.

This management server device SV corresponds to an example of a central processing unit. The SV video storage processing unit 223 corresponds to an example of an event video deletion processing unit that deletes the event video from the event video storage unit after a predetermined fifth time longer than the second time has elapsed from the reception time of the event video received from the sensor device or the detection time of an event related to the event video. The SV video storage processing unit 223 also corresponds to an example of a stored video deletion processing unit that deletes the stored video stored in the stored video storage unit from the stored video storage unit after a predetermined sixth time longer than the second time has elapsed from the reception time of the stored video received from the sensor device or the detection time of an event related to the stored video.

The fixed terminal device SP is equipped with a communication function for communicating with other devices SU, SV, and TA via the network NW, a display function for displaying predetermined information, and an input function for inputting predetermined instructions and data, and functions as a user interface (UI) of the monitored person monitoring support system MS by inputting predetermined instructions and data to be given to the management server device SV and the mobile terminal device TA, displaying monitoring information obtained by the sensor device SU upon notification from the management server device SV, etc. In this embodiment, the fixed terminal device SP also displays event videos and saved videos specified by the user. Such a fixed terminal device SP can be configured, for example, by a computer with a communication function.

The mobile terminal device TA has a communication function for communicating with other devices SV, SP, and SU via the network NW, a display function for displaying predetermined information, an input function for inputting predetermined instructions and data, and a calling function for making voice calls, and is a device for inputting predetermined instructions and data to be given to the management server device SV and the sensor device SU, displaying the monitoring information obtained by the sensor device SU upon notification from the management server device SV, and responding to or calling out to a nurse call via voice calls with the sensor device SU. In this embodiment, the mobile terminal device TA also displays event videos and stored videos specified by the user. Such a mobile terminal device TA can be configured, for example, by a tablet computer with a communication function or a so-called smartphone.

Next, the operation of the monitored person monitoring support system MS in this embodiment will be described. Figure 6 is a flowchart showing the operation related to the storage of saved videos in the sensor device. Figure 7 is a flowchart showing the operation related to the transmission of saved videos in the sensor device. Figure 8 is a sequence diagram showing the operation related to the notification of an event in the monitored person monitoring support system. Figure 9 is a flowchart showing the operation related to the transmission of event videos in the sensor device.

In such a monitored person monitoring support system MS, when the power is turned on, each of the devices SU, SV, SP, TA initializes the necessary parts and starts operating. In the sensor device SU, the control processing program is executed to functionally configure the SU control processing unit 14 with an SU control unit 141, a behavior detection processing unit 142, a nurse call processing unit 143, a SU streaming processing unit 144, a SU video storage processing unit 145, a video transmission processing unit 146, a tag information assignment processing unit 147, and a SU clock unit 148. In the management server device SV, the control processing program is executed to functionally configure the SV control processing unit 22 with an SV control unit 221, a monitoring processing unit 222, a SV video storage processing unit 223, and a SV clock unit 224.

First, the processing of the video generated by the imaging unit 11 in the sensor unit SU will be described. When the sensor unit SU starts operating, the SU video storage processing unit 145 of the SU control processing unit 14 stores each frame (each frame data) in the video generated by the imaging unit 11 in the order of generation from the first start address to the first final address of the first ring buffer storage unit 161, and when the first final address is reached, the sensor unit SU returns to the first start address and stores the data therein, and thereafter repeats this process.

When storing each frame of the video generated by the imaging unit 11 in the first ring buffer memory unit 161, the SU video storage processing unit 145 judges whether the storage process for the first ring buffer memory unit 161 has been completed in FIG. 6 (S11). That is, it is judged whether the frame storage process has reached the first final address. If the result of this judgment is that the process has not been completed (No if the first final address has not been reached), the SU video storage processing unit 145 returns the process to process S11. That is, process S11 is repeated until the process is completed. On the other hand, if the result of the judgment is that the process has been completed (Yes if the first final address has been reached), the SU video storage processing unit 145 stores the video of the first time stored in the first ring buffer memory unit 161 in the second ring buffer memory unit 162 as a saved video (S12), and then executes process S13.

In this process S13, the sensor device SU determines whether or not its operation has ended (stopped) by the SU control processing unit 14. If the result of this determination is that the operation has ended (stopped) (Yes), the sensor device SU ends this process, whereas if the operation has not ended (stopped) (No), the sensor device SU returns the process to process S11.

Then, when the first-hour video stored in the first ring buffer storage unit 161 is stored in the second ring buffer storage unit 162 as a saved video, the SU video storage processing unit 145 judges whether the storage process for the second ring buffer storage unit 162 has been completed in FIG. 7 (S21). That is, it is judged whether the storage process for the first-hour video has reached the second final address. If the result of this judgment is that the process has not been completed (if the second final address has not been reached, No), the SU video storage processing unit 145 returns the process to process S21. That is, process S21 is repeated until the process is completed. On the other hand, if the result of the judgment is that the process has been completed (if the second final address has been reached, Yes), the video transmission processing unit 146 of the SU control processing unit 14 transmits the saved video of the second hour stored in the second ring buffer storage unit 162 to the management server device SV by a saved video notification communication signal (S22), and then executes process S23.

In this process S23, the sensor device SU determines whether or not its operation has ended (stopped) by the SU control processing unit 14. If the result of this determination is that the operation has ended (stopped) (Yes), the sensor device SU ends this process, whereas if the operation has not ended (stopped) (No), the sensor device SU returns the process to process S21.

Each frame of the video generated by the imaging unit 11 in this way is stored in the first ring buffer memory unit 161, and when the storage process for the first ring buffer memory unit 161 completes a cycle from the first start address to the first final address, the first hour of video (video of the first length of time) stored in the first ring buffer memory unit 161 is stored as a saved video in the second ring buffer memory unit 162. Then, when the storage process for the second ring buffer memory unit 162 completes a cycle from the second start address to the second final address, the saved video of the second hour (saved video of the second length of time) stored in the second ring buffer memory unit 162 is transmitted to the management server device SV as a saved video notification communication signal.

Next, the operation of the monitored person monitoring support system MS with regard to the notification of an event will be described. In FIG. 8, when the sensor device SU detects an event (C1), it transmits a first event notification communication signal to the management server device SV to notify the detected event (C2). More specifically, when the sensor device SU starts its operation, it detects the predetermined event by operating as follows for each frame or every few frames, and transmits a first event notification communication signal to the management server device SV when it detects the predetermined event. The sensor device SU acquires one frame of image (image data) from the imaging unit 11 as a target image, detects a predetermined behavior of the monitored person Ob based on the acquired target image, and when it detects the predetermined behavior, transmits a first event notification communication signal of behavior detection containing the detected predetermined behavior as the event information to the management server device SV via the SU communication IF unit 15 in order to notify the detection result to the predetermined terminal device SP, TA. While operating in this manner, the sensor device SU determines whether or not it has received a nurse call, and if it has received a nurse call, in order to notify the specified terminal device SP, TA of the receipt of the nurse call, the sensor device SU transmits a first event notification communication signal for nurse call detection, which contains the received nurse call as the event information, to the management server device SV via the SU communication IF unit 15.

Next, when the management server device SV receives a first event notification communication signal from the sensor device SU (C3), the monitoring processing unit 222 records (stores) the monitoring information from the received first event notification communication signal (C4), and transmits a second event notification communication signal corresponding to the received first event notification communication signal to a predetermined terminal device SP, TA (C5). More specifically, when the monitoring processing unit 222 receives the first event notification communication signal from the sensor device SU via the network NW, the monitoring processing unit 222 stores (records) each piece of information, such as the sensor ID and event information, contained in the received first event notification communication signal in the SV storage unit 23 as monitoring information of the monitored person Ob being monitored by the sensor device SU having this sensor ID. Then, the monitoring processing unit 222 generates a second event notification communication signal addressed to the terminal device SP, TA having a terminal ID corresponding to the sensor ID contained in the received first event notification communication signal, and transmits the generated second event notification communication signal via the SV communication IF unit 21.

Next, when a second event notification communication signal is received from the management server device SV (C6), the terminal device SP, TA that received this second event notification communication signal stores the sensor ID, event information, and other information contained in this second event notification communication signal as monitoring information for the monitored person Ob being monitored by the sensor device SU having this sensor ID, and displays the monitoring information (C7). As a result, the event detected by the sensor device SU is displayed on the specified terminal device SP, TA via the management server device SV.

A monitor NS, such as a nurse or caregiver, who has referenced the monitoring information, inputs a call request to the terminal device SP, TA, for example to make a call. Upon receiving this input, the terminal device SP, TA transmits a communication signal (call request communication signal) to request a call to the sensor device SU having the sensor ID related to the monitoring information being displayed. In response to this call request, the terminal device SP, TA and the sensor device SU are connected so that they can make a call via VoIP, and the monitor NS talks to the monitored person Ob.

For example, to view a video live, the observer NS inputs a video request to the terminal device SP, TA. Upon receiving this input, the terminal device SP, TA transmits a communication signal (video request communication signal) to request a video from the sensor device SU having the sensor ID related to the monitoring information being displayed. In response to this video request, the terminal device SP, TA and the sensor device SU are connected so that the video can be played back via streaming, and the observer NS views the video displayed on the terminal device SP, TA.

Next, the process of transmitting an event video in the sensor device SU will be described. While notifying an event by detecting the event as described above, the sensor device SU transmits the event video by operating as follows.

9, when an event is detected as described with reference to FIG. 8 (S31, process C1 shown in FIG. 8), the sensor device SU judges whether the type of the detected event is a specific type or not (S32) by the video transmission process 146 of the SU control processing unit 14. If the result of this judgment is that the event is of the specific type (Yes), the sensor device SU executes each process of S34, S35, and S36 in sequence by the video transmission process 146 of the SU control processing unit 14, and then terminates this process. On the other hand, if the result of the judgment is that the event is not of the specific type (No, that the event is of the remaining type), the sensor device SU executes process S33 by the tag information assignment process 147 of the SU control processing unit 14, and then terminates this process.

In process S34, in order to generate an event video including the pre-detection video and the post-detection video, the video transmission process 146 functionally generates a timer set to the seventh hour in the SU control processing unit 14 and operates the generated timer.

In process S35 following process S34, the video transmission process 146 determines whether the timer has timed out. If the result of this determination is that the timer has not timed out (No), the video transmission process 146 returns to process S35. That is, process S35 is repeated until the timer has timed out. On the other hand, if the result of the determination is that the timer has timed out (Yes), the video transmission process 146 executes process S36.

In this process S36, the video transmission process 146 transmits the event video to the management server device SV. More specifically, the video transmission process 146 reads the video of the first time stored in the first ring buffer storage unit 161, and transmits the read video of the first time to the management server device SV as an event video with an event video notification communication signal. Therefore, as described above, the video stored in the first ring buffer storage unit 161 is read to be stored as a saved video in the second ring buffer storage unit 162, and when a specific type of event is detected, it is read to be transmitted to the management server device SV as an event video. Note that although they may match, the video read to be stored as a saved video in the second ring buffer storage unit 162 and the video read to be transmitted to the management server device SV as an event video usually do not match.

On the other hand, in process S33, the tag information assignment processing unit 147 associates predetermined tag information related to the detected event with the stored video stored in the SU memory unit 16. For example, the tag information (in this embodiment, the event information and the detection time) is incorporated into the data of the stored video and stored.

When an event is detected in this manner, if the type of the detected event is the specific type (in this embodiment, a fall or trip), the event video is transmitted to the management server device SV via an event video notification communication signal, and if the type of the detected event is the remaining type (in this embodiment, getting up, getting out of bed, and nurse call), tag information is associated with the stored video.

Next, we will explain the processing related to event videos and stored videos in the management server device SV.

As described above, when the management server device SV receives the stored video notification communication signal transmitted from the sensor device SU, the SV video storage processing unit 223 of the SV control processing unit 22 stores the stored video contained in the received stored video notification communication signal in the stored video storage unit 236 of the SV storage unit 23. Then, the management server device SV uses the SV video storage processing unit 223 of the SV control processing unit 22 to add a new record to the stored video attribute information table LT stored in the stored video storage unit 236, registers the sensor ID contained in the received event video notification communication signal in the sensor ID field 2351 of this added record, and registers the stored video file name of the stored video contained in the received stored video notification communication signal in the stored video file name field 2364 of this added record. Then, if the received event video notification communication signal contains tag information, the SV video storage processing unit 223 registers the event information and detection time in the tag information contained in the received stored video notification communication signal in the event field 2362 and detection time field 2363, respectively, of the newly added record, and if the received event video notification communication signal does not contain tag information, the SV video storage processing unit 223 registers the reception time of the received stored video notification communication signal in the detection time field 2363 of the newly added record.

On the other hand, the SV video storage processing unit 223 erases the saved video stored in the saved video storage unit 236 from the saved video storage unit 236 after the sixth hour has elapsed from the reception time of the saved video or the detection time of the event related to the saved video. More specifically, when a preset time during a day arrives, for example, the SV video storage processing unit 223 refers to the detection time or reception time registered in the detection time field 2363 in the saved video attribute information table LT, and if the result of this reference indicates that the sixth hour has elapsed from the detection time or reception time registered in the detection time field 2363, the SV video storage processing unit 223 erases from the saved video storage unit 236 the electronic file of the saved video having the saved video file name registered in the saved video file name field 2364 of this record, and deletes this record from the saved video attribute information table LT.

Also, as described above, when the management server device SV receives an event video notification communication signal transmitted from the sensor device SU, the SV video storage processing unit 223 of the SV control processing unit 22 causes the management server device SV to store the event video contained in the received event video notification communication signal in the event video storage unit 235 of the SV storage unit 23. Then, the management server device SV causes the SV video storage processing unit 223 of the SV control processing unit 22 to newly add a record to the event video attribute information table IT stored in the event video storage unit 235, registers the sensor ID, event information and detection time contained in the received event video notification communication signal in the sensor ID field 2351, event field 2352 and detection time field 2353 of the added record, respectively, and registers the event video file name of the event video contained in the received event video notification communication signal in the event video file name field 2354 of the added record.

On the other hand, the SV video storage processing unit 223 erases the event video from the event video storage unit 235 after the fifth hour has elapsed from the reception time of the event video or the detection time of the event related to the event video. More specifically, for example, at a preset time during a day, the SV video storage processing unit 223 refers to the detection time or reception time registered in the detection time field 2353 in the event video attribute information table IT, and if the reference result indicates that the fifth hour has elapsed from the detection time or reception time registered in the detection time field 2353, it erases from the event video storage unit 235 the electronic file of the event video having the event video file name registered in the event video file name field 2354 of this record, and deletes this record from the event video attribute information table IT.

In this way, the event video is stored in the management server device SV and is erased after the fifth hour has elapsed, and the saved video is stored in the management server device SV and is erased after the sixth hour has elapsed.

As described above, the monitored person monitoring support system MS, the sensor device SU, and the monitoring image storage method implemented therein in this embodiment, when an event is detected, transmits a video of a predetermined first time period including the time when the event is detected, generated by the imaging unit 11, to the management server device SV as an event video, while storing the video generated by the imaging unit 11 in the second ring buffer storage unit 162 as a saved video. Therefore, the event video can be saved in the management server device SV, and the monitored person monitoring support system MS, the sensor device SU, and the monitoring image storage method can save images at the time of occurrence as the saved video while saving images at the time of failure to report. Therefore, it is possible to verify an event using the event video immediately after the event occurs, and it is also possible to verify an event that has been discovered at a later date using the saved video, and both of these verifications can be carried out efficiently.

The monitored person monitoring support system MS, sensor device SU, and monitoring image storage method store the video generated by the imaging unit 11 in a first ring buffer storage unit 161, and transmit the event video from the video stored in the first ring buffer storage unit 161 to the management server device SV, while storing the stored video in a second ring buffer storage unit 162. As a result, the monitored person monitoring support system MS, sensor device SU, and monitoring image storage method have a simplified configuration, and when checking the condition of a patient or the like at a later date, the contents of the event video and the stored video can be treated as having equal value. For example, the contents of the event video and the stored video can be treated as having equal value as evidence. Furthermore, since the first ring buffer memory unit 161 is a ring buffer, the above-mentioned monitored person monitoring support system MS, sensor device SU and monitoring image storage method can be constructed using a memory element with the minimum storage capacity required to store a first hour of video, and after the first hour has elapsed since it was stored in the first ring buffer memory unit 161, the oldest (most recently) stored frame of video is overwritten with the frame of video generated by the imaging unit at that time, and can be automatically erased.

Since the second ring buffer memory unit 162 is a ring buffer, the above-mentioned monitored person monitoring support system MS, sensor device SU and monitoring image storage method can be configured using a memory element with the minimum storage capacity required to store the second hour of video, and after the second hour has elapsed since the video was stored in the second ring buffer memory unit 162, the oldest (most recently stored) stored frame of the video is overwritten with the frame of the video stored at that time, and can be automatically erased.

The above-mentioned monitored person monitoring support system MS, sensor device SU and monitoring image storage method store event videos relating to specific types of events in the management server device SV, so that the videos relating to the remaining types of events can be referenced in the stored videos based on tag information.

In the above embodiment, when the video of the first hour is stored from the first ring buffer storage unit 161 to the second ring buffer storage unit 162 as a saved video, the video of the first hour is stored with its image quality as it is, but the image quality may be changed before being stored. For example, the saved video is stored from the first ring buffer storage unit 161 to the second ring buffer storage unit 162 with a second image quality lower than the first image quality of the video of the first hour (for example, an event video). More specifically, for example, the SU video storage processing unit 145 generates a saved video by image processing the video of the first hour stored in the first ring buffer storage unit 161 so that the video has a second resolution lower than the first resolution, and stores the saved video of the second resolution in the second ring buffer storage unit 162. In one example, the resolution is changed from 1920 x 1080 to 1280 x 720. Alternatively, for example, the SU moving image storage processing unit 145 generates a saved moving image by image processing the moving image of the first time stored in the first ring buffer storage unit 161 so that the moving image has a second frame rate lower than the first frame rate, and stores the saved moving image of the second frame rate in the second ring buffer storage unit 162. In one example, the frame rate is changed from 30 fps to 15 fps. In this way, since the saved moving image has a second image quality lower than the first image quality of the moving image of the first time (for example, an event moving image), the second ring buffer storage unit 162 can be configured with a memory element having a smaller storage capacity.

In the above embodiment, the predetermined behavior of the monitored person Ob is detected as one of the events from the image generated by the imaging unit 11, but this is not limited to this. Instead of the imaging unit 11, or in addition to the imaging unit 11, another sensor may be used to detect the predetermined behavior of the monitored person Ob. For example, a radar (or active sonar) may be used instead of the imaging unit 11, or in addition to the imaging unit 11. A method for detecting a predetermined behavior using a radar (or active sonar) is disclosed, for example, in WO2018/186042 (PCT/JP2018/006492). When the imaging unit 11 and the radar (or active sonar) are used, for example, the first detection result of the imaging unit 11 and the second detection result of the radar (or active sonar) are ORed to determine the final detection result. Note that if the first detection result of the imaging unit 11 and the second detection result of the radar (or active sonar) are the same and within a predetermined time, they may be integrated into one.

In the above embodiment, the time length of the event video and the time length of the saved video stored from the first ring buffer storage unit 161 to the second ring buffer storage unit 162 are the same first time, but may be different. That is, in the above embodiment, the first ring buffer storage unit 161 has a storage capacity capable of storing a video of the same first time as the time length of the event video, but may have a storage capacity capable of storing a video of more than the first time. In the above embodiment, when the storage process for the first ring buffer storage unit 161 is completed, the video of the first time from the first start address to the first end address is stored from the first ring buffer storage unit 161 to the second ring buffer storage unit 162 as a saved video, but the videos stored in a part of the storage area of the first ring buffer storage unit 161 may be stored sequentially in the second ring buffer storage unit 162. That is, the first ring buffer storage unit 161 has a storage capacity for storing a video of a predetermined third time, which is equal to or greater than the first time and less than the second time, and is a storage unit of a ring buffer that stores the video generated by the imaging unit 11. The SU video storage processing unit 145 reads out the video of the fourth time stored in the first ring buffer storage unit 161 (an example of the storage unit of the ring buffer) every time a predetermined fourth time equal to or less than the third time elapses, and stores the read video of the fourth time in the second ring buffer storage unit 162 (an example of the video storage unit) as the saved video. Then, when the video transmission processing unit 146 detects the event, it reads out the video of the first time stored in the first ring buffer storage unit 161 and transmits the read video of the first time to the management server device SV as the event video. Preferably, the third time is multiple times the fourth time. In one example, the third time is 10 minutes, and the fourth time is 2 minutes. In this example, the first ring buffer storage unit 161 makes a cycle every 10 minutes, and during this cycle of 10 minutes, 2 minutes of moving images are sequentially read out from the first ring buffer storage unit 161 as stored moving images every 2 minutes and sequentially stored in the second ring buffer storage unit 162. In this case, there may be an overlap of a predetermined time (several frames) between two stored moving images that are adjacent in time series, or there may be no overlap.

In the above embodiment, when the storage process for the second ring buffer storage unit 162 has been completed, the saved video of the second hour stored in the second ring buffer storage unit 162 is transmitted to the management server device SV by a saved video notification communication signal. However, the saved video of the second hour may be erased by being overwritten sequentially from the second top address of the second ring buffer storage unit 162 without being transmitted to the management server device SV. By reserving a storage capacity for the number of days required for later confirmation in the second ring buffer storage unit 162, the later confirmation can be adequately handled, and there is no need to reserve storage capacity in the management server device SV for storing the saved video of the second hour.

In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the management server device SV erases the stored video after the sixth hour has elapsed, but the stored video memory unit 236 may be configured as a ring buffer from the third starting address to the third final address, and the management server device SV may sequentially store the stored video received from the sensor device SU from the third starting address to the third final address for each reception, and when the management server device SV reaches the third final address, return to the third starting address and store it by overwriting, thereby sequentially erasing the stored video.

In addition, in the above-described embodiment, tag information was assigned when the type of the detected event was not a specific type, but tag information may be assigned to all types of the detected event regardless of the type of the event.

This specification discloses various aspects of the technology as described above, the main technologies of which are summarized below.

A sensor device according to one embodiment of the present invention is provided for a monitored person, which is a monitored person to be monitored, and includes a sensor device that detects a predetermined event related to the monitored person, a central management device that is communicatively connected to the sensor device and receives a notification of an event detected by the sensor device and manages the event, and a terminal device that is communicatively connected to the central management device and receives a notification of an event detected by the sensor device via the central management device. The sensor device of the monitored person monitoring support system for supporting monitoring of the monitored person includes an imaging unit that generates a video, a video transmission processing unit that transmits a video of a predetermined first time period including the time when the event is detected, generated by the imaging unit, to the central management device as an event video when the event is detected, and a video storage unit that has a storage capacity for storing a video of a predetermined second time period longer than the first time period and stores the video generated by the imaging unit as a saved video. Preferably, in the above-mentioned sensor device, the event video includes a video generated by the imaging unit before the time when the event is detected (pre-detection video) and a video generated by the imaging unit after the time when the event is detected (post-detection video). Preferably, in the sensor device described above, the event includes a plurality of types, and when the video transmission processing unit detects a predetermined specific type of event from among the plurality of types, the video transmission processing unit transmits a video generated by the imaging unit for a predetermined first time period including the time point at which the event was detected as an event video to the central management device. Preferably, the types of events are getting up, getting out of bed, falling, tripping, and a nurse call, and the specific type is the fall and the tripping. Preferably, in the sensor device described above, the video transmission unit further transmits a saved video stored in the video storage unit to the central management device.

When such a sensor device detects the event, it transmits a video of a predetermined first time period including the time when the event was detected, which is generated by the imaging unit, to the central management device as an event video, while storing the video generated by the imaging unit in a video storage unit as a saved video. Therefore, the event video can be saved by the central management device, and the sensor device can save images at the time of occurrence as well as images at the time of a failure to report as the saved video.

In another aspect, the sensor device further includes a ring buffer storage unit having a storage capacity for storing a video of a predetermined third time, which is equal to or greater than the first time and less than the second time, and storing the video generated by the imaging unit, and a video storage processing unit that reads out the video of the fourth time stored in the ring buffer storage unit every time a predetermined fourth time equal to or less than the third time has elapsed, and stores the read video of the fourth time in the video storage unit as the saved video, and when the video transmission unit detects the event, it reads out the video of the first time stored in the ring buffer storage unit and transmits the read video of the first time to the central management device as the event video. Preferably, in the sensor device described above, when the event is detected, the video transmission unit reads out the video of the first time stored in the ring buffer after a predetermined seventh time, which is shorter than the first time, has elapsed from the time the event was detected, and transmits the read video of the first time to the central management device as the event video.

Such a sensor device stores the video generated by the imaging unit in a ring buffer storage unit, transmits the event video from the video stored in the ring buffer storage unit to a central management device, and stores the saved video in the video storage unit. This simplifies the configuration of the sensor device, and when checking the condition of a patient or the like at a later date, the contents of the event video and the saved video can be treated as having equal value. Furthermore, since the storage unit is a ring buffer, after a third hour has elapsed since the video was stored in the ring buffer storage unit, the oldest (most recently) stored video frame is overwritten with the video frame generated by the imaging unit at that time, and can be automatically erased.

In another aspect, in the above-mentioned sensor device, the video memory unit is a ring buffer.

In such a sensor device, since the video storage unit is a ring buffer, the sensor device can be configured with a memory element with the minimum storage capacity required to store the second hour of video, and after the second hour has elapsed since the video was stored in the video storage unit, the oldest (most recently) stored frame of the video is overwritten with the frame of the video stored at that time, and can be automatically erased.

In another aspect, in the sensor device described above, the stored video has a second image quality lower than the first image quality of the event video. Preferably, in the sensor device described above, the stored video has a second resolution lower than the first resolution of the event video, and preferably, in the sensor device described above, the stored video has a second frame rate lower than the first frame rate of the event video.

In such a sensor device, the stored video has a second image quality that is lower than the first image quality of the event video, so that the video storage unit can be constructed using a memory element with a smaller storage capacity.

In another aspect, in the sensor device described above, the event includes a plurality of types, and when the video transmission processing unit detects a specific type of event that is set in advance among the plurality of types, the video transmission processing unit transmits a video of a predetermined first time period including the time point at which the event was detected, which is generated by the imaging unit, to the central management device as the event video, and further includes a tag information assignment processing unit that associates predetermined tag information related to the detected event with the saved video stored in the video storage unit when the remaining type of event excluding the specific type among the plurality of types is detected. Preferably, in the sensor device described above, the types of events are getting up, getting out of bed, falling, tipping over, and nurse call, the specific type is the tipping over and tipping over, and the remaining types are getting up, getting out of bed, and nurse call.

In such a sensor device, event videos relating to specific types of events are stored in a central management device and can be viewed from the central management device, and videos relating to the remaining types of events can be viewed from the stored videos based on tag information.

In another aspect, the surveillance image storage method of a monitored person monitoring support system for supporting monitoring of the monitored person includes a sensor device provided in correspondence with the monitored person, the sensor device detecting a predetermined event related to the monitored person, a central management device communicatively connected to the sensor device and receiving notification of the event detected by the sensor device and managing the event, and a terminal device communicatively connected to the central management device and receiving notification of the event detected by the sensor device via the central management device, and includes an imaging process for generating a video, a video transmission process for transmitting, when the event is detected, a video of a predetermined first time period, which includes the time point at which the event was detected, generated in the imaging process to the central management device as an event video, and a video storage process for storing the video generated in the imaging process as a saved video in a video storage unit having a storage capacity for storing a video of a predetermined second time period longer than the first time.

In this surveillance image storage method, when the event is detected, a video generated by the imaging unit for a predetermined first time period including the time when the event was detected is transmitted to the central management device as an event video, while the video generated by the imaging unit is stored in the video storage unit as a saved video. Therefore, the event video can be saved by the central management device, and the surveillance image storage method can save images at the time of occurrence while also saving images at the time of a failure to report as the saved video.

In another aspect, the monitored person monitoring support system is provided in correspondence with the monitored person who is the monitoring target, and includes a sensor device that detects a predetermined event related to the monitored person, a central management device that is communicatively connected to the sensor device and receives notification of the event detected by the sensor device and manages the event, and a terminal device that is communicatively connected to the central management device and receives notification of the event detected by the sensor device via the central management device, and is a monitored person monitoring support system for supporting monitoring of the monitored person, and includes an imaging unit that generates a video, a video transmission processing unit that, when the event is detected, transmits to the central management device a video of a predetermined first time period that includes the time when the event was detected, generated by the imaging unit, as an event video, and a video storage unit that has a storage capacity for storing a video of a predetermined second time period that is longer than the first time period, and stores the video generated by the imaging unit as an archived video. In another aspect, the monitored person monitoring support system comprises a sensor device provided corresponding to the monitored person who is the monitoring target, which detects a specific event related to the monitored person, a central management device communicatively connected to the sensor device and receiving notification of the event detected by the sensor device and managing the event, and a terminal device communicatively connected to the central management device and receiving notification of the event detected by the sensor device via the central management device, and is a monitored person monitoring support system for supporting monitoring of the monitored person, wherein the sensor device is any one of the sensor devices described above.

When the monitored person monitoring support system detects the event, it transmits the video generated by the imaging unit for a predetermined first time period including the time when the event was detected as an event video to the central management device, while storing the video generated by the imaging unit in a video storage unit as a saved video. Therefore, the event video can be saved in the central management device, and the monitored person monitoring support system can save images at the time of occurrence as well as images at the time of a failure to report as the saved video.

In another aspect, in the above-mentioned monitored person monitoring support system, the central management device includes an event video storage unit that stores the event video received from the sensor device, and an event video erasure processing unit that erases the event video from the event video storage unit after a predetermined fifth time longer than the second time has elapsed from the reception time of the event video received from the sensor device or the detection time of an event related to the event video.

Such a monitored person monitoring support system automatically erases event videos after the fifth hour has elapsed from the time the event was received or the time the event was detected, allowing event videos to be stored for only the required time and minimizing the storage capacity of the event video storage unit.

In another aspect, in the above-mentioned monitored person monitoring support system, the video transmission unit further transmits the stored video stored in the video storage unit to the central management device, and the central management device includes a stored video storage unit that stores the stored video received from the sensor device, and a stored video deletion processing unit that deletes the stored video stored in the stored video storage unit from the stored video storage unit after a predetermined sixth hour, which is longer than the second hour, has elapsed from the reception time of the stored video received from the sensor device or the detection time of an event related to the stored video.

Such a monitored person monitoring support system can store the saved video in a central management device and automatically delete the saved video six hours after the time it was received or after the time the event was detected, so that the saved video can be stored for only the required time and the storage capacity of the saved video storage unit can be kept to a minimum.

This application is based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2018-214508 filed on November 15, 2018, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

Although embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described in detail, the same are given by way of illustration and example only and not by way of limitation. The scope of the present invention is to be construed by the language of the appended claims.

In order to express the present invention, the present invention has been described adequately and sufficiently through the embodiments with reference to the drawings in the above description, but it should be recognized that a person skilled in the art can easily change and/or improve the above-mentioned embodiments. Therefore, unless the changes or improvements made by a person skilled in the art are at a level that departs from the scope of the claims described in the claims, the changes or improvements are interpreted as being included in the scope of the claims.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a sensor device of a monitored person monitoring support system for supporting monitoring of a monitored person, a monitoring image storage method for storing the monitoring images, and the monitored person monitoring support system.

Claims (9)

A monitored person monitoring support system for supporting monitoring of the monitored person, comprising: a sensor device provided in correspondence with a monitored person who is the monitoring target, and detecting a predetermined event related to the monitored person; a central management device communicatively connected to the sensor device, receiving notification of the event detected by the sensor device and managing the event; and a terminal device communicatively connected to the central management device and receiving notification of the event detected by the sensor device via the central management device, the sensor device comprising:
An imaging unit that generates moving images;
a video transmission processing unit that, when the event is detected, transmits a video of a predetermined first time period including a time point when the event is detected, which video has been generated by the imaging unit, to the central management device as an event video;
a moving image storage unit having a storage capacity for storing a moving image of a second time period longer than the first time period and configured to store the moving image generated by the imaging unit as a saved moving image;
a ring buffer storage unit having a storage capacity for storing a moving image of a predetermined third time period, which is equal to or greater than the first time period and less than the second time period, and configured to store the moving image generated by the imaging unit ;
a moving image storage processing unit that reads out the moving image of the fourth time stored in the storage unit of the ring buffer every time a predetermined fourth time equal to or less than the third time elapses, and stores the read out moving image of the fourth time in the moving image storage unit as the saved moving image ,
when the event is detected, the video transmission processing unit reads out the video of the first time period stored in the storage unit of the ring buffer, and transmits the read out video of the first time period to the central management device as the event video .
Sensor device. The video storage unit is a ring buffer.
The sensor device according to claim 1 . the stored video has a second image quality lower than the first image quality of the event video;
The sensor device according to claim 1 or 2 . The event includes a plurality of types,
when detecting a specific type of event among the plurality of types, the video transmission processing unit transmits, to the central management device, a video of a predetermined first time period including a time point when the event was detected, the video generated by the imaging unit; and
a tag information assignment processing unit that, when an event of a remaining type excluding the specific type among the plurality of types is detected, associates predetermined tag information related to the detected event with the stored video stored in the video storage unit;
The sensor device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 . A surveillance image storage method for a monitored person monitoring support system for supporting monitoring of a monitored person, the method comprising: a sensor device provided in correspondence with a monitored person who is a monitoring target, the sensor device detecting a predetermined event related to the monitored person; a central management device communicatively connected to the sensor device, receiving notification of the event detected by the sensor device and managing the event; and a terminal device communicatively connected to the central management device and receiving notification of the event detected by the sensor device via the central management device, the method comprising:
An imaging step for generating a moving image;
a video transmission process step of transmitting, when the event is detected, a video of a predetermined first time period including a time point at which the event is detected, which video was generated in the imaging process, to the central management device as an event video;
a first moving image storage step of storing the moving image generated in the imaging step as a saved moving image in a moving image storage unit having a storage capacity for storing a moving image of a predetermined second time longer than the first time;
a second moving image storage step of storing the moving image generated in the imaging step in a storage section of a ring buffer having a storage capacity for storing a moving image of a predetermined third time period, the third time period being equal to or greater than the first time period and less than the second time period;
a third moving image storage step of reading out the moving image of the fourth time stored in the storage unit of the ring buffer every time a predetermined fourth time equal to or less than the third time has elapsed, and storing the read moving image of the fourth time in the moving image storage unit as the saved moving image ,
the video transmission processing step includes, when the event is detected, reading out the video of the first time period stored in a storage unit of the ring buffer, and transmitting the read out video of the first time period to the central management device as the event video .
A method for storing surveillance images. A monitored person monitoring support system for supporting monitoring of a monitored person, comprising: a sensor device provided in correspondence with a monitored person who is a monitoring target, the sensor device detecting a predetermined event related to the monitored person; a central management device communicatively connected to the sensor device, receiving notification of the event detected by the sensor device and managing the event; and a terminal device communicatively connected to the central management device and receiving notification of the event detected by the sensor device via the central management device,
An imaging unit that generates moving images;
a video transmission processing unit that, when the event is detected, transmits a video of a predetermined first time period including a time point when the event is detected, which video has been generated by the imaging unit, to the central management device as an event video;
a moving image storage unit having a storage capacity for storing a moving image of a predetermined second time longer than the first time, the moving image storage unit storing the moving image generated by the imaging unit as a saved moving image;
a ring buffer storage unit having a storage capacity for storing a moving image of a predetermined third time period, which is equal to or greater than the first time period and less than the second time period, and configured to store the moving image generated by the imaging unit ;
a moving image storage processing unit that reads out the moving image of the fourth time stored in the storage unit of the ring buffer every time a predetermined fourth time equal to or less than the third time elapses, and stores the read out moving image of the fourth time in the moving image storage unit as the saved moving image ,
when the event is detected, the video transmission processing unit reads out the video of the first time period stored in the storage unit of the ring buffer, and transmits the read out video of the first time period to the central management device as the event video .
A system for supporting the monitoring of monitored persons. A monitored person monitoring support system for supporting monitoring of a monitored person, comprising: a sensor device provided in correspondence with a monitored person who is a monitoring target, the sensor device detecting a predetermined event related to the monitored person; a central management device communicatively connected to the sensor device, receiving notification of the event detected by the sensor device and managing the event; and a terminal device communicatively connected to the central management device and receiving notification of the event detected by the sensor device via the central management device,
The sensor device is a sensor device according to any one of claims 1 to 4 .
A system for supporting the monitoring of monitored persons. The central management device
an event video storage unit that stores the event video received from the sensor device;
an event video deletion processing unit that deletes the event video from the event video storage unit after a predetermined fifth time longer than the second time has elapsed from a reception time of the event video from the sensor device or a detection time of an event related to the event video.
The monitored person monitoring support system according to claim 6 or 7 . The video transmission processing unit further transmits the saved video stored in the video storage unit to the central management device;
The central management device
a storage unit for storing the stored video received from the sensor device;
a stored video deletion processing unit that deletes the stored video stored in the stored video storage unit from the stored video storage unit after a predetermined sixth time that is longer than the second time has elapsed from a reception time of the stored video received from the sensor device or a detection time of an event related to the stored video.
9. The monitored person monitoring support system according to claim 6 .

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