Security system for notification of an undesired condition at a monitored area with minimized false alarms

A method for notifying at least one security post of an undesired condition at a monitored area, the method including the steps of comprising:

• A. creating a first image of said monitored area at a first time point, said first image divided into a plurality of first image blocks using a predefined predetermined grid;
• B. creating a second image of said monitored area at a second time point, said second image divided into a plurality of second image blocks using said predetermined grid so that each of the second image blocks corresponds to a respective one of the first image blocks;
• C. comparing a said performing a comparison of each of at least one of said plurality of first image block blocks with a the corresponding said second image block, said step of comparing further including the steps of by:
• calculating a first average pixel value of said that first image block;
• calculating a second average pixel value of said corresponding second image block;
• calculating a first standard deviation pixel value of said that first image block;
• calculating a second standard deviation pixel value of said corresponding second image block;
• calculating a first x-coordinate pixel massive center of said that first image block;
• calculating a second x-coordinate pixel massive center of said corresponding second image block;
• calculating a first y-coordinate pixel massive center of said that first image block;
• and
• calculating a second y-coordinate pixel massive center of said corresponding second image block;
• wherein said D. making a determination in response to the comparison that the first image is substantially sufficiently different from said second image if said , for each first image block of at least a predetermined number thereof thereby compared, the first average pixel value calculated therefor is substantially sufficiently different from said the corresponding second average pixel value or if said the first standard deviation pixel value calculated therefor is substantially sufficiently different from said the corresponding second standard deviation pixel value or if said the first x-coordinate pixel massive center calculated therefor is substantially sufficiently different from said the corresponding second x-coordinate pixel massive center or if said the first y-coordinate pixel massive center calculated therefor is substantially sufficiently different from said the corresponding second y-coordinate pixel massive center;
• D. E. sending a fax of signals representing said second image to said at least one security post in response to the determination if said second image is substantially sufficiently different from said first image;
• E. sending a JPEG color image of said second image as an electronic mail to a predetermined security post if said second image is substantially different from said first image;
• F. detecting a remote request for a requested fax of an image of said monitored area;
• G. accepting a fax number remote address to which said requested fax is signals representing that image are to be sent;
• H. sending a fax of said image of said monitored area the signals representing that image to said accepted fax number remote address;
• and
• I. repeating steps operations A, B, C, D, and E, F, G, and H every predetermined time period.

An apparatus for notifying at least one security post of an undesired condition at a monitored area, the apparatus comprising:

• a camera for creating a first image of said monitored area at a first time point and for creating a second image of said monitored area at a second time point, said first image divided into a plurality of first image blocks using a predefined grid and said second image divided into a plurality of second image blocks using said predefined grid so that each of the plurality of second image blocks corresponds to a respective one of the plurality first image blocks;
• a data storage device for storing said first image blocks and said second image blocks;
• an image processor, coupled to said data storage device, for comparing a said determining whether the first image is sufficiently different from the second image by performing a comparison of each of at least one of said plurality of first image block blocks with a the corresponding said second image block, wherein said image processor, when comparing said performing the comparison of that first image block with said the corresponding second image block, calculates the following parameters,
• a first average pixel value of said that first image block;
• a second average pixel value of said corresponding second image block;
• a first standard deviation pixel value of said that first image block;
• a second standard deviation pixel value of said corresponding second image block;
• a first x-coordinate pixel massive center of said that first image block;
• a second x-coordinate pixel massive center of said corresponding second image block;
• a first y-coordinate pixel massive center of said that first image block;
• and
• a second y-coordinate pixel massive center of said corresponding second image block;
• and
• a modem, coupled to said image processor, for sending a fax of said second image to said at least one security post if the image processor determining that said corresponding second image block is substantially sufficiently different from said first image block, wherein said first image is substantially different from said second image if said , for each image block of at least a predetermined number thereof thereby compared, the first average pixel value calculated therefor is substantially sufficiently different from said the corresponding second average pixel value or if said the first standard deviation pixel value calculated therefor is substantially sufficiently different from said the corresponding second standard deviation pixel value or if said the first x-coordinate pixel massive center calculated therefor is substantially sufficiently different from said the corresponding second x-coordinate pixel massive center or if said the first y-coordinate pixel massive center calculated therefor is substantially sufficiently different from said the corresponding second y-coordinate pixel massive center;
• and
• a transmitter, coupled to said image processor, for sending signals representing said second image to said at least one security post in response to the comparison if the image processor has thereby determined that the second image is sufficiently different from the first image.

An apparatus for notifying at least one security post of an undesired condition at a monitored area, the method including the steps of the apparatus comprising:

• a camera for creating a first image of said monitored area at a first time point and for creating a second image of said monitored area at a second time point, said first image divided into a plurality of firs first image blocks using a predefined grid and said second image divided into a plurality of second image blocks using said predefined grid so that each of the plurality of second image blocks corresponds to a respective one of the plurality of first image blocks;
• a data storage device for storing said first image blocks and said second image blocks;
• an image processor, coupled to said data storage device, for determining whether the first image is sufficiently different from the second image by comparing a said at least one of said plurality of first image block blocks with a the corresponding said second image block;
• a modem transmitter, coupled to said image processor, for sending a fax of signals representing said second image to said at least one security post if said corresponding second image block is substantially determined by the image processor to be sufficiently different from said first image block ;
• wherein said modem sends a JPEG color image of said second image as an electronic mail to a predetermined security post if said corresponding second image block is substantially different from said first image block;
• a dual tone multi-frequency detector for detecting a remote request via a phone communications line for a requested fax of an image of said monitored area and for accepting a fax number remote address entered via a phone said communications line to which said requested fax is signals representing that image are to be sent, and wherein said image processor sends a fax of said image of said monitored area the signals representing that image to said accepted fax number remote address;
• and wherein said image processor repeats comparing another first image to another second image every predetermined time period;
• and wherein said image processor when comparing said one of the first image block with said the corresponding second image block calculates the following parameters:
• a first average pixel value of said that first image block;
• a second average pixel value of said corresponding second image block;
• a first standard deviation pixel value of said that first image block;
• a second standard deviation pixel value of said corresponding second image block;
• a first x-coordinate pixel massive center of said that first image block;
• a second x-coordinate pixel massive center of said corresponding second image block;
• a first y-coordinate pixel massive center of said that first image block;
• and
• a second y-coordinate pixel massive center of said corresponding second image block;
• and wherein the image processor determines that said first image is substantially sufficiently different from said second image if said , for each first image block of at least a predetermined number thereof thereby compared, the first average pixel value calculated therefor is substantially sufficiently different from said the corresponding second average pixel value or if said the first standard deviation pixel value calculated therefor is substantially sufficiently different from said the corresponding second standard deviation pixel value or if said the first x-coordinate pixel massive center calculated therefor is substantially sufficiently different from said the corresponding second x-coordinate pixel massive center or if said the first y-coordinate pixel massive center calculated therefor is substantially sufficiently different from said the corresponding second y-coordinate pixel massive center.

An apparatus for notifying at least one security post of an undesired condition at a monitored area, the apparatus comprising:

• means for creating a first image of said monitor area at a first time point and for creating a second image of said monitored area at a second time point, said first image divided into a plurality of first image blocks using a predefined grid and said second image divided into a plurality of second image blocks using said predefined grid;
• means for storing said first image blocks and said second image blocks;
• means for determining whether the first image is sufficiently different from the second image by comparing a said each of at least one of said plurality of first image block blocks with a the corresponding said second image block, wherein said means for comparing, when comparing said first image block with said corresponding second image block, calculates by calculating the following parameters,
• a first average pixel value of said that first image block;
• a second average pixel value of said corresponding second image block;
• a first standard deviation pixel value of said that first image block;
• a second standard deviation pixel value of said corresponding a second image block;
• a first x-coordinate pixel massive center of said that first image block;
• a second xcoordinate x-coordinate pixel massive center of said corresponding second image block;
• a first y-coordinate pixel massive center of said that first image block;
• and
• a second y-coordinate pixel massive center of said corresponding second image block;
• and
• means for sending a fax of said second image to said at least one security post said corresponding second image block is substantially different from said first image block, wherein said first image is substantially different from said second image if said determining that the first image is sufficiently different from the second image if, for each first image block of at least a predetermined number thereof thereby compared, the first average pixel value calculated therefor is substantially sufficiently different from said the corresponding second average pixel value or if said the first standard deviation pixel value calculated therefor is substantially sufficiently different from said the corresponding second standard deviation pixel value or if said the first x-coordinate pixel massive center calculated therefor is substantially sufficiently different from said the corresponding second x-coordinate pixel massive center or if said the first y-coordinate massive center calculated therefor is substantially sufficiently different from said the corresponding second y-coordinate pixel massive center;
• and
• means for sending signals representative of said second image to said at least one security post if the second image is thereby determined to be sufficiently different from the first image.