US 5,133,605 A · Monitoring system employing infrared image

Abstract

An infrared image monitoring system according to the present invention includes an infrared camera and a visible light camera, both viewing the same scene to be monitored. The visible light camera has a threshold means, for example, an optical filter, to attenuate the visible light input to the visible light camera to a level below which the visible light camera can not detect the scene. The output of the visible light camera indicates reflections of the sun light which are brighter than a predetermined threshold level. The output of the visible light camera is superposed over the temperature pattern of the scene measured with the infrared camera, so that the area having the reflection is deleted from the data of the temperature pattern. Thus processed temperature data is further processed with a conventional process so as to judge whether a rise in the temperature data is abnormal or not. The temperature monitoring system is therefore prevented from an erroneous operation caused by a reflection of the sun light in the scene.

Claims11

Dependent claims

A temperature monitoring system for viewing visible and infrared input light from a scene to be monitored, comprising:

a visible light camera having threshold means having a threshold light level, said visible light camera viewing visible input light from the scene to be monitored, said visible light camera outputting a visible light signal including a first plurality of pixels, said visible light signal being at a first logic level for each of the first plurality of pixels having a corresponding visible input light which is less bright than said threshold light level, and said visible light signal being at a second logic level for each of the first plurality of pixels having a corresponding visible input light which is brighter than or as bright as said threshold light level;
an infrared camera for viewing infrared input light from the scene to be monitored, and for outputting a first temperature data for each of a second plurality of pixels which correspond to each of the first plurality of pixels of said visible light camera;
and
superposing means for excluding said first temperature data corresponding to each of the first plurality of pixels of the visible light signal having the second logic level, from said first temperature data so that said first temperature data corresponding to each of the first plurality of pixels of the visible light signal being at the first logic level is output from said superposing means as a second temperature data which is processed to determine an abnormal temperature rise state in said scene to be monitored.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Monitoring system employing infrared image

Life of this patent

Monitoring system employing infrared image

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims11