KR101678420B1 - Searchlight and car number recognition system using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

Provided are a searchlight and a vehicle number recognition system using the same. According an embodiment of the present invention, the searchlight includes: a searchlight source emitting light; an infrared floodlight placed around the searchlight to radiate infrared light at not higher than predetermined illuminance; and a vision sensor placed around the searchlight source to obtain an image. A moment for the infrared light radiation of the infrared floodlight at not higher than predetermined illuminance is synchronized with a moment for the photography of the vision sensor. Therefore, the present invention is capable of easily identifying and searching for a number of a specific vehicle.

Description

[0001] SEARCH LIGHT AND CAR NUMBER RECOGNITION SYSTEM USING THE SAME [0002]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a searchlight and a vehicle number recognition system using the same, and more particularly, to a technology for performing a function of interrupting or checking a crime vehicle in addition to searchlight's own search function.

A searchlight (searchlight) is a device that attaches to a vehicle, a building, a building, etc., and performs near or far light projection at night.

Recently, the necessity of video recording for the field is gradually increasing. Especially, it is very important to secure the video record when watching the field by monitoring the police using a police vehicle or by watching a scene by patrol.

Accordingly, a camera is installed in a police vehicle, and a scene or a specific vehicle is photographed during moving or stopping the police vehicle and stored as a video record.

However, there is a problem that it is difficult to grasp the scene of the photographed image or the object to be photographed in an environment with low illumination such as nighttime.

In addition, there is a problem in that, in order to extract a specific vehicle number such as a specific place (location) or a pick-and-place vehicle from a photographed image, the photographed image must be reproduced one by one.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above problems of the related art, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a method of easily grasping and searching a scene of a scene photographed in a low illuminance environment or a specific vehicle number.

In order to achieve the above object, a searchlight according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a searchlight for emitting light, an infrared emitter for emitting infrared rays at a predetermined illuminance or less, and a vision sensor disposed at a periphery of the detection light source unit and adapted to acquire an image, wherein the infrared ray irradiation point of the infrared light projector and the shooting point of the vision sensor are synchronized below the predetermined illuminance .

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a car number recognition system including a searchlight for emitting light, an infrared ray detector for detecting an infrared ray emitted from the probe light source, A vision sensor disposed around the detection light source unit for acquiring an image; a controller for synchronizing an infrared radiation point of time of the infrared light projector with a shooting point of the vision sensor; And a vehicle number recognition device for recognizing the vehicle number in the received image and determining whether the recognized vehicle number is a predetermined specific vehicle number or not, And a control unit.

According to the embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to easily grasp and search the scene of a scene photographed in a low illuminance environment or a specific vehicle number.

It should be understood that the effects of the present invention are not limited to the above effects and include all effects that can be deduced from the detailed description of the present invention or the configuration of the invention described in the claims.

FIG. 1 is a view showing an application example of a frost sheave according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2A to 2C are diagrams illustrating a searchlight according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a diagram showing a configuration of a car number identification system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the arrangement and connection of a searchlight and a car number recognition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a car number recognition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
6A to 6C are diagrams showing a searchlight according to another embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The present invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein.

In order to clearly illustrate the present invention, parts not related to the description are omitted, and similar parts are denoted by like reference characters throughout the specification.

Throughout the specification, when a part is referred to as being "connected" to another part, it includes not only "directly connected" but also "indirectly connected" .

Also, when an element is referred to as "comprising ", it means that it can include other elements, not excluding other elements unless specifically stated otherwise.

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

FIG. 1 is a view showing an application example of a frost sheave according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The searchlight 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention may be installed on the roof of a police vehicle (hereinafter, referred to as a 'vehicle'), as shown in FIG.

The searchlight 100 includes a searchlight source 110 for emitting light and a infrared floodlight 120 disposed on at least one of the left and right sides of the searchlight source 110 By irradiating infrared rays at a preset illuminance or less, it is possible to easily identify the scene of the scene or the specific vehicle number, which is photographed even in a low-illuminated cloudy weather or at night.

In addition, a vision sensor 130 is disposed on one of the left and right sides of the detection light source 110, so that the surrounding scene of the vehicle can be photographed.

Here, the peripheral scene image photographed through the vision sensor 130 may include information on the time at which the vehicle captured the image, the GPS position information of the photographing location, nearby buildings (landmarks), photographing places, (Including the vehicle number), and the like.

As will be described later, it is possible to extract a video section in which a specific place (building or the like) appears at a specific time by using the surrounding scene image taken by the vision sensor 130, or to easily extract a video section in which a specific number of vehicles appear .

Hereinafter, a searchlight 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

2A to 2C are diagrams illustrating a searchlight 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The searchlight 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a searchlight unit 110, an infrared ray projector 120, a vision sensor 130, a housing 140, a support unit 150, a mounting unit 160, A control unit (not shown) and an interface unit (not shown).

In the description of each component, the search light source unit 110 may include a light emitting diode (LED) module as a searchlight for emitting light.

For reference, the LED module utilizes the principle that the energy is supplied to the P electrode and the N electrode and the holes and electrons are combined in the active layer to lower the energy level, and at the same time, the energy is emitted in the form of light by the lower energy level. , Power consumption is low, circuit is simplified, and response speed is fast.

Of course, the detection light source unit 110 may not be implemented by only the LED module, but may be realized by other light emitting means such as a Xenon lamp in addition to the LED module.

Also, the detection light source unit 110 may include a reflector disposed around the lamp, so that the light loss of the detection light source unit 110 can be minimized.

The detection light source unit 110 may include a transparent cover 111 for protecting the lamp from external shocks and contamination and the shapes of the detection light source unit 110 and the transparent cover 111 are shown in FIGS. Or may be formed in other shapes.

The infrared light emitter 120 is an auxiliary illumination device that can be used as a substitute for the detection light source unit 110 when photographing the low vision of the vision sensor 130. The infrared light emitter 120 is disposed at one or more of left and right sides of the detection light source unit 110, Infrared rays can be irradiated below the illuminance. According to one embodiment, the control unit (not shown) may turn off the infrared light projector 120 at the same time when the detection light source unit 110 is turned on.

Here, the point of time when the infrared ray is irradiated may be synchronized with the photographing time point of the vision sensor 130 by a control unit (not shown).

That is, the infrared radiator 120 can be flickered by a control unit (not shown), and the heat of the high output infrared ray projector can be minimized through the flicker control.

In addition, the illuminance may be set to a specific illuminance at the time of manufacturing the infrared illuminator 120, or the illuminance required by the user may be set.

In addition, the infrared light projector 120 may include heat dissipation and heat insulation means for hot water use.

On the other hand, the vision sensor 130 may be disposed on either the left or right side of the search light source 110 to acquire an image of a surrounding scene during moving (traveling) of the vehicle or during a stop.

The vision sensor 130 may be disposed with the infrared light projector 120, as shown in Figs. 2A to 2C.

The vision direction of the vision sensor 130 is the same as the dimming direction of the detection light source unit 110 and may be the same as the infrared irradiation direction of the infrared light projector 120.

The vision sensor 130 can be used together with the detection light source unit 110 or the infrared light projector 120 according to the illuminance of the photographing environment and when the infrared light projector 120 is used, (Not shown) can be synchronized with the irradiation time of the infrared ray projector 120. [

The vision sensor 130 can photograph the surrounding scene by using the detection light source unit 110 or the infrared ray projector 120 in a low illumination environment so that the photographing site and the object to be photographed (vehicle, license plate, etc.) can be easily identified .

The vision sensor 130 preferably has a capability of recognizing the type of the vehicle, the number plate of the vehicle, and the number of the license plate in an image photographed during driving.

For example, in order to recognize a vehicle number in a running state, a pixel is at least 1.3 million pixels and can shoot at 15 frames per second or more.

For reference, the vision sensor 130 may be interlocked with a GPS module (not shown), and images photographed by the vision sensor 130 may be stored together with GPS information.

The GPS module (not shown) may be included in the searchlight 100 or may be mounted on the vehicle.

The housing 140 may receive the searchlight unit 110, the infrared ray projector 120, and the vision sensor 130 so that the main body of the searchlight 100 is exposed to an external shock And can be protected from contamination.

Hereinafter, the detection light source unit 110, the infrared ray projector 120, and the vision sensor 130 housed in the housing 140 will be collectively referred to as an 'upper portion of a searchlight'.

The upper portion of the searchlight can be rotated in the left-right direction under the control of the control unit (not shown) according to the set value inputted by the user.

On the other hand, the support portion 150 can support the upper portion of the searchlight when the searchlight 100 is installed in the roof of the vehicle.

The support portion 150 may receive first driving means (such as a rotation motor) for rotating the upper portion of the searchlight in the left-right direction, and the rotation speed of the first driving means may be controlled by a control unit Lt; / RTI > At least one first position sensor (not shown) for confirming the rotational position by the first driving means may be disposed on the supporting part 150.

Further, according to the embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to further include second driving means (such as a rotation motor) for driving the detection light source unit 110 in the up-down direction, The driving speed can also be controlled by a control unit (not shown). And at least one second position sensor for confirming the up / down driving position according to the second driving means.

As will be described later, the search direction detected by the position sensors (not shown) can be used to determine whether the image photographed by the vision sensor 130 is an oblique direction image or to perform an image planarization process.

Here, the 'oblique direction image' may include an image taken by rotating the upper portion of the searchlight in the left-right direction or the up-down direction. When the image is flattened, As shown in FIG.

Meanwhile, the mounting portion 160 is coupled to the lower surface of the support portion 150, so that the searchlight 100 can be stably fixed to the roof of the vehicle.

The control unit (not shown) may control the operation of the detection light source unit 110, the infrared ray projecting unit 120, the vision sensor 130, and the like. The interface unit (not shown) (Not shown) installed inside the vehicle, control means for controlling the searchlight 100, and the like can be connected to each other.

For this purpose, the interface unit (not shown) can use a communication network system such as Gigabit Ethernet.

In addition, the searchlight 100 may further include an illuminance sensor (not shown) on the top surface or the front surface thereof to prevent the vision sensor 130 from being damaged due to heat generated by the search light source unit 110 and the infrared ray projector 120 For example, a temperature sensor (not shown), and the like.

In addition, the searchlight 100 may further include means or structure for reducing or suppressing natural vibration of the vehicle, which occurs when the vehicle is running, or impact generated when the vehicle passes through the ruggedness.

Also, the searchlight 100 can receive power from a battery (not shown) of the vehicle.

3 is a diagram showing a configuration of a car number identification system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The car number recognition system according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a search light 100 and a car number recognition device 200. [

Since the searchlight 100 has already been described with reference to Fig. 2, the car number recognizing apparatus 200 will be mainly described here.

The vehicle number recognizing apparatus 200 can receive an image photographed from the searchlight 100 and store the image on a frame unit basis. At this time, the vehicle number recognizing apparatus 200 recognizes the GPS information and the direction detected by the search direction-position sensor (not shown) The location information is determined according to the location information - at least one of the information can be received and stored together with the image. Of course, the photographing time is also stored.

At this time, the car number recognizing apparatus 200 can determine whether the image is photographed in the oblique direction, based on the information about the search direction of the searchlight 100. [

If the image is photographed in the oblique direction, the car number recognition apparatus 200 performs the image flattening process on the image by reflecting the information on the search direction, and outputs the resultant image, that is, The corrected image can be stored.

This makes it possible to increase the accuracy of the car number and landmark recognition of the car number identification device 200. [

In addition, the car number recognition apparatus 200 recognizes the shape of the car from the image received from the searchlight 100, recognizes the license plate on the recognized car, and recognizes the car number on the recognized license plate.

After recognizing the car number, the car number recognizing apparatus 200 compares the car number with the specific car number stored in advance (for example, the number of the criminal car ordered and the number of the unpaid car) A warning sound and a message indicating that there is a warning.

At this time, the car number recognizing apparatus 200 can continuously output the recognized image of the specific car number through the display device in the vehicle while receiving the photographed image from the searchlight 100.

Then, at least one of the photographing time of the image, the GPS information, and the image in which the specific vehicle number is recognized can be transmitted to a related server (for example, a server of an investigation agency) (not shown).

In addition, the car number recognition apparatus 200 may recognize not only the car number but also the landmark information from the photographed image received from the searchlight 100, and may store the information together with the photographed image.

Here, the 'information on the landmark' may include letters, numbers, symbols, and the like displayed on the signboard of the building or the facility appearing in the photographed image.

For example, when a wedding center building appears in a photographed image and a signboard called 'ㅇ o wedding center' is installed on the side of the building (in front of the vehicle), the vehicle number recognition apparatus 200 stores the image, And information about 'landmark' can be stored together with the information.

This can be very useful for selecting and viewing only a photographing section in which a specific place (position) appears in the photographed image or a photographing section in which a specific vehicle number such as a crime vehicle appears.

For reference, the car number recognizing apparatus 200 can increase search efficiency by storing a specific car number or landmark information in a photographed image by matching and storing a separate indicator indicating the car number or landmark information.

That is, it is possible to inquire all the video segments in which the specific car number appears in the stored shot images, or only the video segments in which the specific car number appears at a specific time.

In addition, it is also possible to inquire all the video segments in which the specific landmark exists, or only the video segments in which the specific landmark appears at a specific time, Only the video segment can be viewed.

In addition, the car number recognition apparatus 200 may provide a number recognition application based on a graphical user interface (GUI) to provide a user with a recognition of a specific car number from the photographed image received from the searchlight 100 , A touch screen type user interface and a user interface through a hardware such as a keyboard can be provided so that the user can inquire desired time and place (landmark and the like) and car number from the pre-stored shot image.

Also, the car number recognition apparatus 200 can be connected to the searchlight 100 using a communication network system such as Gigabit Ethernet.

4 is a diagram showing the arrangement and connection of the searchlight 100 and the car number recognition apparatus 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in Fig. 4, the searchlight 100 is located in the roof of the vehicle, and the vehicle identification apparatus 200 is located on the front of the vehicle.

The searchlight 100 receives power from the battery of the vehicle and the searchlight 100 and the car number recognition apparatus 200 can be connected to each other by a communication network system such as Gigabit Ethernet.

The image photographed by the searchlight 100 is provided to and stored in the vehicle identification apparatus 200. When the vehicle identification apparatus 200 recognizes a specific vehicle number such as a crime vehicle from the received image, An alarm or a message for notifying the user of the number can be provided through the number recognition device 200.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a car number recognition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The vehicle identification apparatus 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a communication unit 210, a control unit 220, a storage unit 230, and a display unit 240.

The communication unit 210 can communicate with the searchlight 100 through a communication network system such as Gigabit Ethernet or the like and can receive the photographed image from the searchlight 100. [

In addition, when the number of a specific vehicle such as a criminal vehicle is recognized, the communication unit 210 can transmit a message to the server of the investigation agency (not shown).

At this time, a captured image in which the recognized vehicle number appears can be transmitted together with the captured time and the GPS information.

Of course, the communication unit 210 may receive various information such as a message or a shot image from a server (not shown) of the investigation agency or another vehicle.

On the other hand, the control unit 220 may receive the photographed image received from the searchlight 100 and store the photographed image in the storage unit 230 on a frame-by-frame basis.

When the received photographed image is an image photographed in an oblique direction, the control unit 220 reflects the information about the search direction of the searchlight 100 to perform an image flattening process for the image, and stores the result (230). ≪ / RTI >

In addition, the control unit 220 recognizes the shape of the vehicle on the photographed image received from the searchlight 100, recognizes the license plate on the recognized vehicle, and recognizes the license plate number on the recognized license plate.

Also, the control unit 220 may recognize the landmark information from the photographed image received from the searchlight 100, and may store the information together with the photographed image.

At this time, the control unit 220 can increase search efficiency by storing a specific vehicle number or landmark information in the photographed image by matching and storing a separate indicator indicating the same.

For reference, the control unit 220 may store not only the specific vehicle number but also an indicator informing that the vehicle number is recognized with the recognized vehicle number when the general vehicle number is recognized in the shot image.

This takes into consideration the need for any car number inquiry that may occur in the future, as well as the vehicle currently being ordered as a crime vehicle.

The control unit 220 may transmit a control command for the left or right rotation direction of the searchlight 100 input by the user to the searchlight 100 through the communication unit 210. [

Here, the control command for the left or right rotation direction of the searchlight 100 can be input through a user interface provided on the display unit 240, and can be controlled by a searchlight 100 and a separate control device Etc.).

In addition, the control unit 220 may extract and provide an image corresponding to the corresponding condition among the images stored in the storage unit 230, based on the image query condition input by the user.

Meanwhile, the storage unit 230 may store the photographed image received from the searchlight 100 on a frame-by-frame basis. The storage unit 230 may store the photographed time, GPS information, and the presence or absence of a specific vehicle number or landmark information in the frame Indicators that represent them can be stored together.

Of course, when not only the specific vehicle number but also the vehicle number are recognized, it is also possible to store an indicator informing the recognized vehicle number together with the recognized vehicle number.

On the other hand, the display unit 240 can output the photographed image received from the searchlight 100 in real time.

In addition, when the number of a specific vehicle such as a criminal vehicle is recognized, the display unit 240 may output an image in which the corresponding car number appears and may output a notification or a message informing it.

Also, the display unit 240 may include a touch screen, and may provide a user interface so that the user can inquire the time and place (landmark, etc.) desired by the user in the captured image stored in the storage unit 230 .

Also, the display unit 240 may provide a control command for the left or right rotation direction of the searchlight 100 from a user interface that receives the control command.

6A to 6C are diagrams showing a searchlight 100 'according to another embodiment of the present invention.

The searchlight 100 'according to another embodiment of the present invention is the same as the searchlight 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention shown in FIGS. 2A to 2C, (Not shown), and an interface unit (not shown). The light source unit 110 ', the infrared light projector 120', the vision sensor 130 ', the housing 140', the support unit 150 ', the mounting unit 160' Not shown).

6A, the infrared light projector 120 'and the vision sensor 130' may be disposed below the detection light source 110 ', and the infrared light projector 120' may include a vision sensor 130 ' And can be arranged in a surrounding form.

The operation of each component is the same as that of the searchlight 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention shown in Figs. 2A to 2C, and therefore, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the foregoing description of the present invention is for illustrative purposes only and that those of ordinary skill in the art can readily understand that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics of the present invention. will be.

It is therefore to be understood that the above-described embodiments are illustrative in all aspects and not restrictive.

For example, each component described as a single entity may be distributed and implemented, and components described as being distributed may also be implemented in a combined form.

The scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims, and all changes or modifications derived from the meaning and scope of the claims and their equivalents should be construed as being included within the scope of the present invention.

100: Searchlight
110:
120: Infrared light transmitter
130: Vision sensor
140: housing
150: Support
160:
200: Vehicle number recognition device
210:
220:
230:
240:

Claims (13)

As a searchlight,
A detection light source for emitting light;
An infrared ray projector disposed in the periphery of the detection light source unit for irradiating infrared rays at a predetermined illuminance or less;
A vision sensor disposed around the detection light source to acquire an image;
First driving means for rotating the detection light source unit in the left or right direction;
A first position sensor for sensing position information of the housing rotating in the left or right direction; And
And a control unit,
Wherein the control unit synchronizes the infrared radiation point of time of the infrared light projector with the shooting time point of the vision sensor and stores the position information of the housing detected by the first position sensor corresponding to the time of image acquisition by the vision sensor , The location information stored corresponding to the image acquisition time is transmitted to a car number recognition device that receives the image obtained from the searchlight, and the car number recognition device searches for the car navigation device in the diagonal direction based on the received image and the location information A searchlight that allows image planarization to be performed in the case of photographed images.
delete The method according to claim 1,
A housing for accommodating the infrared light projector and the vision sensor so as to be integrally formed;
A support coupled to a lower portion of the housing to support the housing; And
A mounting portion coupled to a lower surface of the support portion to fix the searchlight to the vehicle,
Further comprising:
delete The method according to claim 1,
The infrared light emitter
Wherein the light source unit is disposed at one or more of left and right sides of the detection light source unit,
The vision sensor
Wherein the searchlight is disposed at one or more of left and right sides of the searchlight source unit.
The method according to claim 1,
The infrared light projector and the vision sensor
Wherein the light source unit is disposed below the detection light source unit,
Wherein the infrared light projector is disposed in a form surrounding the vision sensor.
The method according to claim 1,
Second driving means for driving the detection light source unit in an upward or downward direction; And
A second position sensor for sensing position information of the detection light source unit that is driven in the up or down direction;
Further comprising:
1. A car number identification system comprising:
A searchlight source for emitting light, an infrared floodlight disposed around the searchlight source for irradiating infrared rays at a predetermined illuminance or less, a vision sensor disposed around the searchlight source for acquiring an image, a control unit for synchronizing an infrared radiation point of time of the infrared light projector with a shooting point of the vision sensor at a predetermined illumination level or less and a communication unit for transmitting the acquired image; And
A vehicle number recognizing device that receives and stores the image from the searchlight, recognizes a vehicle number in the received image, and determines whether the recognized vehicle number is a predetermined specific vehicle number;
Lt; / RTI >
The searchlight
First driving means for rotating the searchlight leftward or rightward; And
A first position sensor for sensing position information of the searchlight that is changed due to the rotation;
Further comprising:
The vehicle number recognition device
Determines whether the received image is an image photographed in an oblique direction based on the detected position information of the searchlight, and if the image is photographed in an oblique direction, performs an image flattening operation on the received image A car number identification system
9. The method of claim 8,
The vehicle number recognition device
Recognizes the landmark information in the received image, and further stores the recognized landmark information.
9. The method of claim 8,
The vehicle number recognition device
Extracts and provides an image section corresponding to the search condition based on a search condition including at least one of a photographing time of the stored image, GPS information, a recognized car number, and landmark information, system.
delete 9. The method of claim 8,
The searchlight
Second driving means for driving the detection light source unit in an upward or downward direction; And
A second position sensor for detecting the position information of the detection light source unit which is changed due to the driving;
Further comprising: a vehicle identification number identifying means for identifying the vehicle identification number.
9. The method of claim 8,
The vehicle number recognition device
Wherein when the received image is stored, an indicator indicating whether the recognized vehicle number and landmark information is included is stored together.

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