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US 5,982,418 AGranted
Distributed video data storage in video surveillance system
AssigneeSensormatic Electronics Corporation
InventorReuel Andrew Ely
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A video surveillance system includes a central control station and a plurality of video cameras each mounted inside a dome housing unit. A video data buffer memory, storing compressed video data generated by the camera, is mounted with each camera in the respective dome unit. Data buffered at the dome units may be selectively protected from over-writing in response to alarm signals and then retrieved for display or tape-recording by the central control station. Both live and buffered video signals are transmitted in compressed form over a data network that is also used for command, alarm and status messaging.
Claims22
A video surveillance system comprising:
- a central station;
- a plurality of video cameras, located remotely from said central station, for generating respective video signals;
- a plurality of storage means, each located remotely from said central station and associated with a respective one of the video cameras for storing digital video data representative of the video signal generated by the respective video camera;
- connection means for forming a signal path between said central station and each of said storage means, said connection means including a plurality of control means each operatively connected to a respective one of said storage means for controlling the respective storage means to operate as a ring buffer in which digital video data representative of video signals currently generated by the respective video camera is written over oldest digital video data stored in the respective storage means;
- sensor means for generating an alarm signal indicative of an alarm condition;
- and
- means for transmitting said alarm signal from said sensor means to said central station;
- wherein said central station responds to receiving said alarm signal by transmitting a storage signal to at least one of said control means, said at least one of said control means responding to said storage signal by inhibiting overwriting of said oldest digital video data in the respective storage means controlled by said control means.
5 more elements
A video surveillance system, comprising:
- a central station;
- a plurality of camera units each including a respective video camera for generating respective video signals and a respective digital storage device for storing digital video data representative of the video signal generated by the respective video camera;
- a plurality of sensors each for generating a respective alarm signal indicative of an alarm condition;
- message means interconnecting said central station, said camera units and said sensors, for transmitting command messages from said central station to said camera units and for transmitting said alarm signals from said sensors to said central station;
- a plurality of monitors for receiving and displaying video signals corresponding to video signals generated by said camera units;
- a video switch;
- first analog signal lines, connected between said video switch and said camera units, for transmitting analog video signals from said camera units to said video switch;
- and
- second analog signal lines, connected between said video switch and said monitors, for transmitting analog video signals from said video switch to said monitors;
- said central station controlling said video switch to couple selected ones of said first analog signal lines to selected ones of said second analog signal lines to route analog video signals from said camera units to said monitors;
- said analog video signals routed to said monitors from said camera units including analog video signals corresponding to signals retrieved from said digital storage devices pursuant to command signals transmitted via said message means from said central station to said camera units
- each of said camera units including control means for controlling the respective digital storage device to operate as a ring buffer in which digital video data representative of video signals currently generated by the respective video camera is written over oldest digital video data stored in the respective digital storage device;
- and
- said central station responding to receiving an alarm signal from one of said sensors by transmitting a storage signal to at least one of said control means, said at least one of said control means responding to said storage signal by inhibiting overwriting of said oldest digital video data in the respective digital storage device controlled by said control means.
11 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.