JP4304850B2 - Surveillance camera diagnostic device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a monitoring camera diagnostic apparatus that diagnoses whether or not a camera unit of a monitoring camera apparatus is operating normally.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, when diagnosing whether or not the camera unit of the monitoring camera device is operating normally, the image capturing function (zoom, focus, pan / tilt mechanism, etc.) of the camera unit is operated from a remote monitoring device to capture an image, This was displayed on the display part and it was confirmed whether it was operating normally visually.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the above-described conventional diagnostic method, there is a problem that personnel costs must be met to check the operating state of the camera unit, and since this diagnosis is performed periodically, labor costs increase.
[0004]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
A monitoring camera diagnostic apparatus according to the present invention is a monitoring camera diagnostic apparatus in a system including a monitoring camera apparatus having a camera unit and a monitoring apparatus having a display unit that displays an image of a subject photographed by the camera unit. The monitoring camera device includes a light emitting unit disposed within a shooting range of the camera unit, a control unit that outputs a control signal to the light emitting unit to blink, and an image of the light emitting unit that is captured by the camera unit. The blinking image processing unit that extracts only the blinking image and calculates the blinking time of the light emitting unit as one cycle, and the blinking time calculated by the blinking image processing unit matches the cycle of the control signal of the control unit. And a camera operation determining unit for comparing the results and displaying the result on the display unit of the monitoring device.
[0005]
In the present invention, when the control unit of the surveillance camera device outputs a control signal to the light emitting unit disposed within the imaging range of the camera unit and blinks, the blinking image processing unit captures an image captured by the camera unit. Only the blinking image of the light emitting unit is extracted, and the blinking time of the light emitting unit is calculated as one cycle. On the other hand, the camera operation determination unit compares whether the blinking time calculated by the blinking image processing unit matches the control signal cycle of the control unit, and if both match, the camera unit is operating normally. Is displayed on the display unit of the monitoring device, and when both do not match, the display unit displays that the operation of the camera unit is abnormal.
[0006]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiment 1 FIG.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a monitoring camera diagnostic apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.
In the figure, a monitoring camera device 1 is attached to a ceiling, a wall or the like according to a monitoring place, and includes a camera unit 2, a camera control unit 3, a drive circuit 4, and an image storage unit 5 including a buffer. Further, a self-diagnosis LED (light emitting part) 6 is provided at the tip of a support part (not shown) fixed to the casing of the apparatus 1 so as to be located, for example, in the lower right corner within the photographing range of the camera part 2. Is provided.
[0007]
The above-described camera control unit 3 includes an LED control unit 7 that outputs a blinking control signal that causes the LED 6 to blink, a drive circuit 4 that blinks the LED 6 based on the input of the blinking control signal, and an image captured by the camera unit 2. Only the blinking image of the LED 6 is extracted, and the blinking image processing unit 8 that calculates the blinking time from the start of lighting of the LED 6 to the end of extinction from the blinking image as one cycle, and the blinking control signal output from the LED control unit 7 When the flashing time calculated by the flashing image processing unit 8 is set, the cycle is compared with the cycle of the flashing control signal. When both match, information indicating that the operation of the camera unit 2 is normal is transmitted via the communication line 60. And a camera operation determining unit 9 that transmits information indicating that the operation of the camera unit 2 is abnormal when the two do not match.
[0008]
When the monitoring start signal transmitted from the monitoring device 11 is received, the camera control unit 3 operates the camera unit 2 and stores the image of the subject within the shooting range in the image storage unit 5 for each frame. At the same time, the image information of one frame is transmitted to the monitoring device 11 via the communication line 60, and when the diagnosis start signal is received, the monitoring function is switched to the diagnosis function, and the LED control unit 7 described above blinks. The image processing unit 8 and the camera operation determination unit 9 are operated. The monitoring device 11 displays on the display unit 12 based on each information from the monitoring camera device 1.
[0009]
Next, the operation of the first embodiment will be described based on the flowchart shown in FIG. It is assumed that the camera unit 2 of the monitoring camera device 1 is shooting a subject within the shooting range and the image is displayed on the display unit 12 of the monitoring device 11.
In this state, when a diagnosis start signal is received from the monitoring device 11, the camera control unit 3 of the monitoring camera device 1 switches from the monitoring function to the diagnosis function. At this time, the LED control unit 7 outputs a blink control signal for blinking the LED 6 to the drive circuit 4 and the camera operation determination unit 9 (S1), and the drive circuit 4 blinks the LED 6 based on the blink control signal (S2). . The blinking timing of the LED 6 is set in consideration of the shutter speed of the camera unit 2 and the image transfer speed.
[0010]
On the other hand, the blinking image processing unit 8 takes in the image captured by the camera unit 2 and extracts only the blinking image of the LED 6 (S3), and sets the blinking time from the start of lighting of the LED 6 to the end of turn-off from the blinking image. The period is calculated (S4) and output to the camera operation determination unit 9. When the blinking time calculated by the blinking image processing unit 8 is input, the camera operation determination unit 9 compares whether or not the cycle of the blinking control signal from the LED control unit 7 matches (S5), and both match. When the camera unit 2 operates normally, information indicating that the operation of the camera unit 2 is normal is transmitted to the monitoring device 11 of the monitoring center via the communication line 60 (S6). It transmits to the monitoring apparatus 11 (S7).
[0011]
Thus, when the period of the blinking control signal for causing the LED 6 to blink and the blinking time calculated from the blinking image of the LED 6 coincide with each other, it is determined that the camera unit 2 is operating normally. Since the determination is made and the fact is displayed on the display unit 12 of the monitoring device 11, it is not necessary to check the operating state of the camera unit 2 by attending the staff, and the labor cost required for the periodic diagnosis can be reduced. There is an effect.
[0012]
Embodiment 2. FIG.
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the monitoring camera diagnostic apparatus according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention.
The surveillance camera device 21 according to the second embodiment includes a camera unit 2, a drive circuit 4, an image storage unit 5, and an LED 6 for self-diagnosis provided at the lower right corner in the imaging range of the camera unit 2. And a camera control unit 22. The camera control unit 22 switches from the monitoring function to the diagnosis function when the diagnosis start signal is received, and then outputs the control signal to the drive circuit 4 to cause the LED 6 to blink when the blink control signal is received. Then, the image from the camera unit 2 input at this time is stored in the image storage unit 5 for each frame, and the image is transmitted to the monitoring device 31.
[0013]
The monitoring device 31 includes a main body portion 32 and a display portion 36, and the main body portion 32 transmits a blinking control signal for blinking the LED 6 disposed at a predetermined position in front of the camera portion 2 to the camera control portion 22. The LED control unit 33, the blinking image processing unit 34 that extracts only the blinking image of the LED 6 from the received image, and calculates the blinking time of the LED 6 from the blinking image as one cycle, and the blinking control from the LED control unit 33 When the flashing time calculated by the flashing image processing unit 34 is input and compared with the cycle of the flashing control signal, and when both match, information indicating that the operation of the camera unit 2 is normal is displayed on the display unit 36. And a camera operation determining unit 36 for displaying information indicating an abnormality in the operation of the camera unit 2 on the display unit 36 when both do not match.
[0014]
Next, the operation of the second embodiment will be described. When the diagnosis start signal is transmitted from the monitoring device 31 to switch the function of the monitoring camera device 21 to the diagnosis function, and then the blinking control signal is transmitted to cause the LED 6 to blink, an image including blinking of the LED 6 is displayed on the monitoring camera device 21. Sent from At this time, the blinking image processing unit 34 extracts the blinking image of the LED 6 from the received image, calculates the blinking time of the LED 6 as one cycle, and outputs it to the camera operation determination unit 35. When the blinking time calculated by the blinking image processing unit 34 is input, the camera operation determination unit 9 compares whether or not the cycle of the blinking control signal matches, and when both match, the operation of the camera unit 2 is performed. Information indicating normality is displayed on the display unit 36, and when both do not match, information indicating that the operation of the camera unit 2 is abnormal is displayed on the display unit 36.
[0015]
As described above, in the second embodiment, the LED 6 of the monitoring camera device 21 is blinked from the monitoring device 31 to receive the image at that time, and the blinking image of the LED 6 is extracted to calculate the blinking time to control the blinking. Compared with the first embodiment configured to receive only the comparison result, the risk of receiving a fake comparison result is eliminated because the comparison is made as to whether or not the period of the signal matches. There is an effect that it is possible to improve the function.
Note that the cycle of the blinking control signal output from the LED control unit 33 may be changed by, for example, an input device (keyboard).
[0016]
Embodiment 3 FIG.
FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the monitoring camera diagnostic apparatus according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention.
The surveillance camera device 41 according to the third embodiment includes a camera unit 2, a drive circuit 4, an image storage unit 5, a self-diagnosis LED 6 arranged at the same position as described above, and a camera control unit 42. ing. The camera control unit 42 has a random number generation unit 43 and a blinking time that sets, for example, the first random number generated by the random number generation unit 43 as the lighting time of the LED 6 and the blinking time with the next random number as the turn-off time as one cycle. The setting unit 44 and a blinking control signal based on the blinking time set by the blinking time setting unit 44 are output to the drive circuit 4, the blinking time is transmitted as information to a monitoring device 51 described later, and the camera unit 2 And a diagnostic information setting unit 45 that transmits the image taken by the monitoring device 51 via the image storage unit 5.
[0017]
The monitoring device 51 includes a main unit 52 and a display unit 55. The main unit 52 extracts only the blinking image of the LED 6 from the image from the monitoring camera device 41, and calculates the blinking time of the LED 6 as one cycle. The flashing image processing unit 53 and the flashing time information from the monitoring camera device 41 are compared with whether or not the flashing time calculated by the flashing image processing unit 53 matches. Is displayed on the display unit 55, and when the two do not match, the camera operation determining unit 54 displays information indicating that the operation of the camera unit 2 is abnormal on the display unit 55.
[0018]
Next, the operation of the third embodiment will be described. When the monitoring camera device 41 receives the diagnosis start signal from the monitoring device 51, the camera control unit 42 switches from the monitoring function to the diagnosis function, and then when the blinking control signal is received, the random number of the camera control unit 42 The generation unit 43 generates a random number. At this time, the blinking time setting unit 44 sets the blinking time of the LED 6 based on the random number generated by the random number generation unit 43 and notifies the diagnosis information setting unit 45 of the blinking time. The diagnostic information setting unit 45 outputs a blinking control signal based on the blinking time notified by the blinking time setting unit 44 to the drive circuit 4 to blink the LED 6 and transmits the blinking time as information to the monitoring device 51. . At this time, the image captured by the camera unit 2 is stored in the image storage unit 5 for each frame, and the image is transmitted to the monitoring device 51.
[0019]
On the other hand, when the image from the monitoring camera device 41 is received, the blinking image processing unit 53 of the monitoring device 51 extracts only the blinking image of the LED 6, calculates the blinking time of the LED 6 as one cycle, and the camera operation determination unit. Set to 54. When the blinking time calculated by the blinking image processing unit 53 is set, the camera operation determining unit 54 compares the information with the blinking time of the information from the monitoring camera device 41. Information indicating normality is displayed on the display unit 55, and when both do not match, information indicating that the operation of the camera unit 2 is abnormal is displayed on the display unit 55.
[0020]
As described above, in the third embodiment, the monitoring camera device 41 blinks the LED 6 with the blinking time based on the random number, and transmits the image at that time and the blinking time information to the monitoring device 51, and the monitoring device 51 Since the flashing image of the LED 6 is extracted from the image and the flashing time is calculated and compared with the flashing time of the information, the flashing control signal for flashing the LED 6 is intercepted and a pseudo flashing image is transmitted by the monitoring device 51. There is an effect that it is not.
[0021]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, the blinking time is calculated from the blinking image of the light emitting unit blinking by the control signal, compared with whether or not it matches the cycle of the control signal, and the result is displayed on the display unit of the monitoring device. Since the display is made, there is no need to check the operating state of the camera by a staff member, and the labor cost required for the periodic diagnosis can be reduced.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a monitoring camera diagnostic apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the operation of the first embodiment.
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a monitoring camera diagnostic apparatus according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a monitoring camera diagnostic apparatus according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Surveillance camera apparatus 2 Camera part 3 Camera control part 4 Drive circuit 5 Image storage part 6 LED
7 LED control unit 8 blinking image processing unit 9 camera operation determination unit 11 monitoring device 12 display unit

Claims (3)

In a monitoring camera diagnosis apparatus in a system including a monitoring camera apparatus having a camera unit and a monitoring apparatus including a display unit that displays an image of a subject photographed by the camera unit,
The monitoring camera device includes a light emitting unit disposed within a shooting range of the camera unit, a control unit that outputs a control signal to the light emitting unit to blink, and an image of the light emitting unit that is captured by the camera unit. The blinking image processing unit that extracts only the blinking image and calculates the blinking time of the light emitting unit as one cycle, and the blinking time calculated by the blinking image processing unit matches the cycle of the control signal of the control unit. A monitoring camera diagnostic apparatus, comprising: a camera operation determination unit that compares the results of the determination and displays the result on the display unit of the monitoring apparatus. In a monitoring camera diagnostic apparatus in a system including a monitoring camera apparatus having a camera unit and a monitoring apparatus including a display unit that displays an image of a subject photographed by the camera unit,
A control unit that causes the monitoring device to output a control signal to a light emitting unit disposed within a photographing range of the camera unit and blinks, and extracts only a blinking image of the light emitting unit from an image photographed by the camera unit. The flashing image processing unit that calculates the flashing time of the light emitting unit as one cycle, and whether the flashing time calculated by the flashing image processing unit and the cycle of the control signal of the control unit match, A monitoring camera diagnostic apparatus, comprising: a camera operation determination unit that displays the result on the display unit. In a monitoring camera diagnostic apparatus in a system including a monitoring camera apparatus having a camera unit and a monitoring apparatus including a display unit that displays an image of a subject photographed by the camera unit,
A flashing time setting for setting the flashing time of the light emitting unit based on the random number generated by the light emitting unit, the random number generating unit, and the random number generating unit arranged in the imaging range of the camera unit in the monitoring camera device And flashing the light-emitting unit based on the flashing time set by the flashing time setting unit, transmitting the flashing time as information to the monitoring device, and capturing an image taken by the camera unit A diagnostic information setting unit to be transmitted to the monitoring device;
The monitoring device extracts only the flashing image of the light emitting unit from the received image and calculates the flashing time of the light emitting unit as one cycle; and the flashing time of the received information A monitoring camera diagnostic apparatus comprising: a camera operation determination unit that compares whether or not the flashing time calculated by the flashing image processing unit matches and displays the result on the display unit.

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