Window blanking for pan/tilt/zoom camera
AssigneePelco
InventorsChien-Min Huang, Farzin Aghdasi, Zhan Jiang Ma
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Network cameras employing advanced video analytics are increasingly being used in both public and private settings. Unlike fixed surveillance cameras, pan/tilt/zoom cameras provide a dynamic field-of-view. Some regions within a given field-of-view can be designated as private and may not be recorded. A window-blanking feature, according to an embodiment of the invention, enables an ability to block out defined portions of the video where a privacy zone may otherwise appear. Through use of the embodiment, consistent privacy is provided during dynamic surveillance to ensure compliance with privacy regulations or contractual arrangements relating to use of a surveillance camera having a privacy zone within the given field-of-view.
Claims19
A method of window-blanking for a pan/tilt/zoom camera, the method comprising:
- obtaining a panoramic image from the camera;
- enabling a user to interact with the panoramic image as an interface for defining a privacy zone through a defined input mode;
- providing a selection of layers including a panoramic image layer, map layer, hybrid panoramic image map layer, and annotations layer with the panoramic image interface;
- computing a pan/tilt angle relative to world ground coordinates for each vertex of the privacy zone within a field-of-view of the camera;
- determining coordinates for each vertex based on an updated or predicted camera field-of-view;
- and
- blocking-out the privacy zone using the coordinates for each vertex.
A window-blanking image sensor system, comprising:
- an image sensor;
- a computer memory storing program instructions in communication with the image sensor, the program instructions being loadable and executable by a processor, and when executed, cause the processor to:
- compute an absolute pan/tilt angle relative to world ground coordinates for each vertex of a privacy zone within a field-of-view for the image sensor;
- determine coordinates for each vertex based on an updated or predicted image sensor field-of-view;
- and
- block-out the privacy zone using the coordinates for each vertex;
- and
- a privacy engine stored in the computer memory, wherein the privacy engine includes a mapping component configured to:
- receive a panoramic image from the image sensor;
- enable a user to interact with the panoramic image as an interface for defining the privacy zone through a defined input mode;
- and
- provide a selection of layers including a panoramic image layer, a map layer, a hybrid panoramic image map layer, and an annotations layer with the panoramic image interface.
A method of enabling window-blanking by a camera, comprising:
- obtaining a panoramic image for a pan/tilt/zoom camera;
- enabling a user to interact with the panoramic image as an interface for defining the privacy zone through a defined input mode and to define at least one blanking zone within the panoramic image;
- providing a selection of layers including a panoramic image layer, map layer, hybrid panoramic image map layer, and annotations layer with the panoramic image interface;
- and
- storing vertices of the at least one blanking zone in a manner that enables blanking of the at least one blanking zone during imaging by the camera.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.