Traffic Monitoring Patents (Class 348/149)
  • Publication number: 20140002661
    Abstract: A method for detecting camera degradation and faults comprises identifying a plurality of cameras comprising a camera network, collecting at least one system metric indicative of the camera's performance, analyzing the system metrics according to at least one of a plurality diagnostics layers comprising an individual diagnostic layer, a network diagnostic layer, and a pair diagnostic layer, and identifying a fault condition indicative of a faulty camera in the camera network according to the diagnostic layers.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 29, 2012
    Publication date: January 2, 2014
    Applicant: XEROX CORPORATION
    Inventors: Wencheng Wu, Edul N. Dalal
  • Patent number: 8620023
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for detecting objects. An object detector associated with a platform and configured to detect a number of objects is used to monitor for the number of objects. In response to detecting the number of objects, a number of distances to the number of objects detected by the object detector are measured using a distance measurement system. A number of geographic locations for the number of objects is identified using the number of distances, a location of the platform, and an orientation of the distance measurement system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 13, 2010
    Date of Patent: December 31, 2013
    Assignee: The Boeing Company
    Inventor: Leonard A. Plotke
  • Patent number: 8599261
    Abstract: Method and apparatus for counting vehicles at entrances, exits and transition zones of multi-story carparks, including particularly where the ceiling heights can be just marginally higher than the tallest expected vehicle, with a view to determine the carpark occupancy at different carpark levels by counting passing vehicles using a vision-based car counting system without relying on viewing test patterns or employing a blocking beam scheme and yet tolerating vehicles transgressing partially or fully into the wrong lane of a two-lane two-way road while ignoring vehicles moving opposite to the expected direction. Without imposing additional constraints to ambient carpark illumination, the methodology copes with highly specular vehicle surfaces, ignores non-vehicular objects and detects moving cast shadow or highlight, and adapts to daily and seasonal scene changes, and yet estimates vehicle speed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 20, 2012
    Date of Patent: December 3, 2013
    Assignee: PureTech Systems, Inc.
    Inventor: Fereydoun Maali
  • Patent number: 8600651
    Abstract: Methods, systems, and computer-readable media described herein provide for filtering relevant traffic from sensed or received traffic information for display, enhancement, or alerting, without requiring knowledge of runway, taxiway, or taxi route locations at an airport. Traffic information is sensed or received regarding nearby aircraft or other vehicles and is filtered using one or more filtering strategies to determine a subset of relevant traffic for which to display traffic indicators and/or traffic data on a display unit in the aircraft. The subset of relevant traffic may be further tested for convergence or potential convergence and filtered using one or more additional filtering strategies to determine traffic having critical traffic conditions for which to enhance the display of the traffic indicators on the display unit or to alert the flight crew of the critical traffic conditions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 24, 2009
    Date of Patent: December 3, 2013
    Assignee: The Boeing Company
    Inventors: Samuel T. Clark, Roglenda R. Bowe
  • Patent number: 8599260
    Abstract: A system for capturing images of a vehicle violating an extended stop arm of a school bus. The system includes a housing, a base plate for the housing, a system actuation device, and a mounting plate. The system comprises the following components disposed between the base plate and the housing: (i) at least a first camera for capturing an image of a license plate of a vehicle passing the school bus; (ii) a storage device for recording images from the first camera; and (iii) a power source for operating the camera and storage device. The mounting plate is attached to the school bus, and the base plate and housing are removably attached to the mounting plate without the need for permanently attaching the system to the school bus.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 2, 2012
    Date of Patent: December 3, 2013
    Assignee: Zen-Tinel, Inc.
    Inventor: Larry Vaughn
  • Patent number: 8593519
    Abstract: A field watch apparatus for use in a subject vehicle acquires a road image from a roadside capture unit located around the subject vehicle on a road and, based on the acquired image, generates an overhead view of a field around the subject vehicle in an intuitively recognizable manner by including a distant surrounding vehicle in the view, thereby providing a precisely understandable view of the field around the subject vehicle for the ease of satisfactorily identifying the distant surrounding vehicle without being compromised by the position of the roadside capture unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 4, 2008
    Date of Patent: November 26, 2013
    Assignee: Denso Corporation
    Inventors: Makiko Tauchi, Sei Iguchi, Asako Nagata
  • Publication number: 20130300873
    Abstract: A method for multichannel video monitoring of traffic interchanges relating to methods for multichannel video monitoring of congestion at traffic interchanges. To broaden the functionality by providing picture transmission in real time from several video cameras spread at different distances and displaying the picture on monitors, video cameras are placed at traffic interchanges, and the information received from the video cameras is transmitted over a data transmission system bus to the central reception console where the information received from the video cameras is processed and fed to a broadcasting studio equipment room where the information is formed, for instance, by multiplexing and displayed on the end user's screen, wherein any known system for presenting processed information to the end user is used, for instance, cable TV channels by means of which the filling with pictures received from video cameras placed at traffic interchanges is performed in real time.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 5, 2011
    Publication date: November 14, 2013
    Inventor: Pavel Anatolievich Klopov
  • Publication number: 20130293717
    Abstract: A system and method for providing lane sensing on a vehicle by detecting roadway lane-markers, where the system employs a surround view camera system providing a top-down view image around the vehicle. The method includes detecting left-side and right-side lane boundary lines in the top-down view image, and then determining whether the lane boundary lines in the image are aligned from one image frame to a next image frame and are aligned from image to image in the top-down view image. If the boundary lines are not aligned, then calibration of one or more of the cameras is performed, and if the lines are aligned, then a model fitting process is used to specifically identify the location of the boundary lines on the roadway.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 9, 2013
    Publication date: November 7, 2013
    Applicant: GM GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY OPERATIONS LLC
    Inventors: Wende Zhang, Bakhtiar Brian Litkouhi, Kent S. Lybecker
  • Patent number: 8576069
    Abstract: Mobile monitoring systems and methods are disclosed. In accordance with one aspect of the invention, the system includes a plurality of vehicles and a base communication station that are in communication with each other. Each of the vehicles includes a camera that generates image data, a location device that generates geographic coordinates of the vehicle, a computing device that receives the image data from the camera and the geographic coordinates of the vehicle and forms a processed image signal that includes the image data, the geographic coordinates and a time stamp, and a communication device that receives the processed image signal from the computing device and wireless transmits the processed image signal to the base communication station. The base communication station receives the processed image signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 11, 2010
    Date of Patent: November 5, 2013
    Assignee: Siemens Corporation
    Inventors: Tamer M. Nadeem, Michael T. Loiacono
  • Patent number: 8576281
    Abstract: Aspects of a method and system for processing video data are disclosed and may include detecting, within a single chip in a programmable surveillance video camera, one or more moving objects in a raw video signal generated by the programmable surveillance video camera. One or more characteristics of the detected one or more objects may be extracted within the single chip in the programmable surveillance video camera. The extraction may be based on the raw video signal and may be performed prior to compression of the raw video data. The characteristics of the detected one or more objects may include shape, texture, color, motion presence, motion direction, sequence name, location, links, and/or alarm type. One or more textual representations of at least one of the characteristics of the detected one or more objects may be generated within the single chip in the programmable surveillance video camera.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 12, 2008
    Date of Patent: November 5, 2013
    Assignee: ITS-7 Pty Ltd
    Inventor: Tarik Hammadou
  • Patent number: 8576284
    Abstract: In a monitoring system for monitoring parking of a vehicle in a specific area by a monitoring image pick-up device, and a monitoring apparatus, the monitoring image pick-up device includes an image pick-up portion. And the monitoring apparatus includes: a parking area enter/exit determining portion for determining whether or not a vehicle enters or exits from the specific area; an imaging setting change instructing portion for instructing the image pick-up portion to change an imaging setting to another one suitable for capturing a vehicle image containing specific information on the vehicle when it is determined that the vehicle enters or exits from the area; and a parking determining portion for calculating a time for which the vehicle is parked in the area from image capturing time when the vehicle enters the area, and image capturing time when the vehicle exits from the area.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 5, 2007
    Date of Patent: November 5, 2013
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Georgero Konno, Makoto Usami
  • Publication number: 20130286208
    Abstract: Methods and systems for automatically detecting multi-object anomalies at a traffic intersection utilizing a joint sparse reconstruction model. A first input video sequence at a first traffic location can be received and at least one normal event involving P moving objects (where P is greater than or equal to 1) can be identified in an offline training phase. The normal event in the first input video sequence can be assigned to at least one normal event class and a training dictionary suitable for joint sparse reconstruction can be built in the offline training phase. A second input video sequence captured at a second traffic location similar to the first traffic location can be received and at least one event involving P moving objects can be identified in an online detection phase.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 21, 2012
    Publication date: October 31, 2013
    Applicant: XEROX CORPORATION
    Inventors: Raja Bala, Zhigang Fan, Aaron Burry, Vishal Monga, Xuan Mo
  • Publication number: 20130261838
    Abstract: A vehicular imaging system for determining roadway width includes an image sensor for capturing images and an image processor for receiving the captured images. The image processor determines roadway width by identifying roadway marker signs and oncoming traffic in processed images captured by the image sensor and determining the number of lanes, vehicle location on the roadway based on the roadway size and/or width and location of oncoming traffic.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 28, 2012
    Publication date: October 3, 2013
    Applicant: GENTEX CORPORATION
    Inventors: Jeremy A. Schut, David M. Falb
  • Patent number: 8547436
    Abstract: A method of configuring data processing apparatus for automatically determining the real size of an object in an image of a scene is provided. The method includes responding to user input by displaying in the image of the scene displayed on the display screen a virtual object representative of a real size object to establish a first datum position, and storing data defining the first datum position; varying a size of the virtual object in the image; storing data representative of a horizontal and vertical size of the virtual object relative to the displayed image at the first datum position; displaying said virtual object at a second datum position in said image; varying the size of the virtual object on the display screen at the second datum position; and storing data representative of the vertical and horizontal size of the virtual object at the second datum position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 27, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 1, 2013
    Assignee: Ispotek Ltd
    Inventors: Boghos Boghossian, James Black
  • Publication number: 20130242104
    Abstract: A traffic monitoring system includes a plurality of cameras, a monitor center and a portable electronic device. The cameras are respectively positioned at a plurality of monitoring regions to obtain images of the monitoring regions. The monitor center receives the images of the monitoring regions from the cameras and determines a traffic information in the monitoring regions according to the images. The portable electronic device is communicated with the monitor center and receives the traffic information from the monitor center. A method for monitoring a roadway condition is also provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 26, 2012
    Publication date: September 19, 2013
    Applicants: HON HAI PRECISION INDUSTRY CO., LTD., GDS Software (ShenZhen) Co., Ltd
    Inventors: Chi-Chih WANG, Tzu-Te WANG, KaiI-Chiang YANG
  • Patent number: 8537221
    Abstract: This invention relates generally to vision systems for vehicles and, more particularly, to rear-view vision systems which provide the vehicle operator with scenic information in the direction rearward of the vehicle. More particularly, the invention relates to a rear-view vision system utilizing image capture devices, such as CMOS imaging arrays in external rear view mirrors to support lane change in a driver assistant system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 21, 2008
    Date of Patent: September 17, 2013
    Assignee: SMR Patents S.à.r.l.
    Inventors: Daniel Wagner, Frank Lisenmaier
  • Patent number: 8531281
    Abstract: A device and a method for detecting motor vehicles and their approach angles by passive or active transponders which are provided on the motor vehicles is described, which can be triggered by a transceiver device to transfer information stored in the transponders. It is recommended that on a motor vehicle at least two transponders are arranged with a restricted emission angle range and a different emission direction, and that information suitable for identifying the motor vehicle is stored in the transponders.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 18, 2008
    Date of Patent: September 10, 2013
    Assignees: Continental Teves AG & Co. oHG, ADC Automotive Distance Controls Systems GmbH
    Inventors: Ulrich Stählin, Jürgen Diebold, Wilfried Mehr
  • Patent number: 8525882
    Abstract: A vehicle-mounted camera includes a camera module mounted on a vehicle such as an automobile, and further includes a mirror occupying at least a part of an imaging range of the camera module. The camera module may be arranged to face a forward vehicle traveling direction. The mirror may occupy a lower part of the vertical direction in the imaging range. The camera module and the mirror may both be disposed in the vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 15, 2010
    Date of Patent: September 3, 2013
    Assignee: Rohm Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hiroaki Onishi, Koji Hashimoto, Mikio Ichiura
  • Publication number: 20130215274
    Abstract: Provided is an apparatus for sensing careless driving using a camera attached to a vehicle and warning a driver of a careless driving state, the apparatus including: a driving state determination unit for sensing a driving state of a vehicle based on a video of lanes; a lane-deviation sensing unit for sensing whether the vehicle deviated from the lane based on the video of lanes received from an image-processing unit; and a careless driving warning unit for generating a warning signal based on driving state information and lane deviation information received from the driving state determination unit and the lane-deviation sensing unit, respectively.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 6, 2011
    Publication date: August 22, 2013
    Applicant: DAEGU GYEONGBUK INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
    Inventors: Joon-Woo Son, Su-Wan Park, Tae-Young Lee
  • Publication number: 20130215273
    Abstract: An apparatus for monitoring and reporting suspect traffic violations is provided. The Apparatus comprises at least one video camera for capturing a video clip of a suspect traffic violation by an offending vehicle; a processor coupled to the at least one video camera, the processor configured to detect the suspect traffic violation based on a particular set of traffic violations and definitions of triggering events; and an interface to a network for reporting the detected suspect traffic violation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 25, 2013
    Publication date: August 22, 2013
    Applicant: SaferPlace, Ltd.
    Inventor: SaferPlace, Ltd.
  • Publication number: 20130208121
    Abstract: A method, system, and computer-usable tangible storage device for traffic camera diagnostics via strategic use of moving test targets are disclosed. The disclosed embodiments can comprise four modules: Moving test target management module, Moving test target detection and identification module, Image/video feature extraction module, and Sensor characterization and diagnostics module. A first test vehicle can travel periodically through traffic camera(s) of interest. The traffic camera(s) would then identify these test vehicles via matching of license plate numbers and then identify test targets in video frames through pattern matching or barcode reading. The identified test targets are then analyzed to extract image and video features that can be used for sensor characterization, sensor health assessment, and sensor diagnostics. The disclosed embodiments provide for a non-traffic-stop (i.e., non-traffic-interruption) traffic camera diagnostics.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 10, 2012
    Publication date: August 15, 2013
    Inventors: Wencheng Wu, Martin E. Hoover
  • Patent number: 8508594
    Abstract: A surface camera system includes a support housing configured to be embedded in the surface of a track and a camera housing couplable to the support housing. A camera is coupled to the camera housing and may be embodied as a high definition camera or a standard definition camera. The camera housing includes a top surface shaped and sized so as not to interfere with traffic on the track.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 9, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 13, 2013
    Assignee: ON-BOARD VIDEO, Ltd.
    Inventor: James B. Fishman
  • Publication number: 20130184938
    Abstract: An apparatus for locating, inspecting, or placing marks on a roadway. The apparatus includes a GPS-based machine vision locator for sampling discrete geographical location data of a pre-existing roadway mark evident on the roadway. A computer may determine a continuous smooth geographical location function fitted to the sampled geographical location data. And a marker is responsive to the GPS-based locator and geographical location function for replicating automatically the pre-existing roadway mark onto the roadway. The apparatus is typically part of a moving vehicle. A related method is disclosed for locating, inspecting, and placing marks on a resurfaced roadway. A similar apparatus can be used to guide a vehicle having a snow plow along a snow-covered roadway, or a paving machine along an unpaved roadway surface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 27, 2012
    Publication date: July 18, 2013
    Applicant: Limn Tech LLC
    Inventor: Limn Tech LLC
  • Patent number: 8482665
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is a camera module including: an image sensor which converts an image entering through a lens into an electric signal; a rigid-flexible substrate which includes first and second rigid substrates distanced from each other and a flexible substrate to connect the first and the second rigid substrates to each other; a first connection part which is electrically connected to the rigid-flexible substrate; and a second connection part which has one end electrically connected to the first connection part and the other end connected to a cable, and which is disconnectable from the first connection part and the cable.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 11, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 9, 2013
    Assignee: Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hae Jin Jeon, Joo Young Ha, In Taek Song
  • Patent number: 8466962
    Abstract: An apparatus for integrating sensors with a traffic signal. A camera is operably disposed within a housing. The housing is attached to an object such that the camera can observe traffic flowing past a traffic signal. A visor is attached to the housing such that an optical aperture of the camera is covered by the visor, wherein the visor comprises a roof having an angle that slopes, relative to the housing, towards the optical aperture, wherein the visor further comprises a floor connected to the roof, and wherein the floor extends outwardly from the housing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 29, 2007
    Date of Patent: June 18, 2013
    Assignee: M&K Hutchison Investments, LP
    Inventor: Michael Cole Hutchison
  • Patent number: 8466806
    Abstract: An alert system for a vehicle includes a forward facing camera having a field of view that encompasses the road ahead of and traveled on by the equipped vehicle, and may include a radar detector having a field of view to the side of and rearward of the equipped vehicle as it travels along the road and/or an image-based detector having a field of view to the side of and rearward of the equipped vehicle as it travels along the road. The alert system determines a lane change into a side lane by the equipped vehicle and detects a vehicle in that side lane, and an alert is generated to the driver of the equipped vehicle. The alert may be generated irrespective of the status of a turn signal of the equipped vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 12, 2009
    Date of Patent: June 18, 2013
    Assignee: Donnelly Corporation
    Inventor: Kenneth Schofield
  • Publication number: 20130147959
    Abstract: What is disclosed is a system and method for determining a pixel classification threshold for vehicle occupancy determination. An IR image of a moving vehicle is captured using a multi-band IR imaging system. A driver's face is detected using a face recognition algorithm. Multi-spectral information extracted from pixels identified as human tissue of the driver's face is used to determine a pixel classification threshold. This threshold is then used to facilitate a classification of pixels of a remainder of the IR image. Once pixels in the remainder of the image have been classified, a determination can be made whether the vehicle contains additional human occupants other than the driver. An authority is alerted in the instance where the vehicle is found to be traveling in a HOV/HOT lane requiring two or more human occupants and a determination has been made that the vehicle contains an insufficient number of human occupants.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 13, 2011
    Publication date: June 13, 2013
    Applicant: XEROX CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yao Rong WANG, Beilei XU, Peter PAUL
  • Patent number: 8461975
    Abstract: An obstacle position indicating apparatus is disclosed. In the apparatus, multiple actuators are arranged in a periphery of a conduction plate so as to give an external force to an end of the conduction plate in a planer direction of the conduction plate. A drive control component determines a ratio of magnitude of amplitude of designated two actuators in accordance with information on a direction to an obstacle and causes the designated two actuators to perform reciprocating motion in accordance with the determined ratio. The conduction plate conducts the vibration, which results from the reciprocating motion of the designated two actuators, to a hand of an occupant touching the conduction plate, thereby providing the occupant with the information on the direction to the obstacle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 24, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 11, 2013
    Assignee: Denso Corporation
    Inventors: Tsutomu Matsuno, Satoshi Nozoe
  • Patent number: 8462211
    Abstract: The invention, at the first frame, records the background, as the threshold of detection-constant image with the predeterming minimum threshold, and with each subsequent frame, corrects the background and threshold with formulas while producing the adaptation of a renewal-constant in each pixel depending on the presence of the detected object, defines the difference between the current frame and background, compares it with the threshold, combines elements exceeding a threshold into detection zones, performs rejection of the detection zones, divides the zones in order to separate shadows, forms a tracking zone, searches already-detected segment of objects, forming clusters of the tracking zones. The coordinates of the obtained rectangles are assumed as the coordinates of the objects located in the frame.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 19, 2009
    Date of Patent: June 11, 2013
    Assignee: Hitachi Kokusai Electric Inc.
    Inventors: Vitaly Alexandrovich Lopota, Alexander Sergeyevich Kondratyev, Victor Ivanovich Yudin, Sergey Anatoliyevich Polovko, Ekaterina Yurevna Smirnova, Kirill Nikolayevich Stupin, Lev Borisovich Kogan, Dmitry Nikolayevich Stepanov
  • Publication number: 20130141520
    Abstract: A lane tracking system for a motor vehicle includes a camera and a lane tracking processor. The camera is configured to receive image of a road from a wide-angle field of view and generate a corresponding digital representation of the image. The lane tracking processor is configured to receive the digital representation of the image from the camera and to: detect one or more lane boundaries, each lane boundary including a plurality of lane boundary points; convert the plurality of lane boundary points into a Cartesian vehicle coordinate system; and fit a reliability-weighted model lane line to the plurality of points.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 20, 2012
    Publication date: June 6, 2013
    Applicant: GM GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY OPERATIONS LLC
    Inventors: Wende Zhang, Bakhtiar Brian Litkouhi
  • Patent number: 8456327
    Abstract: An automatic vehicle equipment control system and methods thereof are provided, the system includes at least one imager configured to acquire a continuous sequence of high dynamic range single frame images, a processor, a color spectral filter array including a plurality of color filters, at least a portion of which are different colors, and pixels of an imager pixel array being in optical communication with substantially one spectral color filter, and a lens, wherein the imager is configured to capture a non-saturated image of nearby oncoming headlamps and at least one of a diffuse lane marking and a distant tail lamp in one image frame of the continuous sequence of high dynamic range single frame images, and the system configured to detect at least one of said highway markings and said tail lamps, and quantify light from the oncoming headlamp from data in the one image frame.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 4, 2013
    Assignee: Gentex Corporation
    Inventors: Jon H. Bechtel, Jeremy C. Andrus, Gregory S. Bush, David J. Wright, Jim L. Schneider, Tom B. Sherman
  • Publication number: 20130135478
    Abstract: The present invention provides an apparatus and method for combining lane information with a far-infrared image, by combining an image taken by a far-infrared image capturing device with a lane information image, and displaying the combined image such that a driver can visualize the location and position of the road lanes on a night vision image that allows visualization of objects such as, for example, animals, people, vehicles, and the like, in the road at night, or in inclement weather conditions, thereby ensuring safe driving while preventing the driver from veering out of a road lane.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 19, 2012
    Publication date: May 30, 2013
    Applicant: HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY
    Inventor: Seok Gyu Kim
  • Patent number: 8451329
    Abstract: A system and method for PTZ presets control analytic configuration in one aspect provides a camera that includes PTZ preset information and analytics configuration information to allow local, that is, within the camera, processing at each preset position. In one embodiment, the information is set-up or configured using, for example, a PC, PDA (personal digital assistant), or the like, etc., which may be remotely or locally connected to a camera. In one aspect, if a PTZ camera is being operated manually and is moved to a particular position, the PTZ automatically moves to the nearest preset position and operates under the conditions of the associated analytics configuration.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 14, 2006
    Date of Patent: May 28, 2013
    Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
    Inventor: Kenneth L. Addy
  • Patent number: 8436902
    Abstract: A method for image-based weather condition detection, using image processing methods in moving vehicles, is described. The method includes detecting road weather conditions by identifying a group of bright pixels in video images produced by an image-based road characterization, and determining whether the bright pixels are caused by reflections due to one of rainfall, snowfall, a wet surface, or a snowy surface, where a driving assistant system includes a lane-keeping system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 29, 2008
    Date of Patent: May 7, 2013
    Assignee: VALEO Schalter and Sensoren GmbH
    Inventor: Andreas Kuehnle
  • Patent number: 8436901
    Abstract: A field monitoring system using a mobile terminal includes at least one mobile terminal which transmits situation information including video information, audio information and location information and receives three-dimensional (3D) image information corresponding to the situation information, and a control server which receives the situation information from the mobile terminal, generates 3D image information about a current location of the mobile terminal by matching the location information of the situation information with pre-stored map information or architectural drawing information, and transmits the 3D image information to the mobile terminal. The video and audio information is generated by capturing video and sound of a field, and the location information is generated by integrating signals sensed by an accelerometer and a gyroscope sensor with a Global Positioning System (GPS) signal including latitude, longitude and time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 20, 2009
    Date of Patent: May 7, 2013
    Assignee: ID. Fone Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Hyun Duk Uhm
  • Publication number: 20130093895
    Abstract: The invention refers to a system for monitoring, analyzing and reporting incidences of traffic violations at a predetermined area in real-time, prospectively or retrospectively. Specifically, the invention refers to a system and method of monitoring, analyzing, predicting and reporting or warning the incidence of a past or imminent traffic violation by acquiring a moving object within a predetermined boundary, assigning a path to the moving object and based on a plurality of thresholds, determining the likelihood of a traffic violation type and occurrence.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 17, 2011
    Publication date: April 18, 2013
    Inventors: Samuel David Palmer, Ofer Netanel Aharoni
  • Publication number: 20130088600
    Abstract: Systems and methods are disclosed that include a video-based analysis system that detects, tracks and archives vehicles in video stream data at multiple resolutions. The system includes an image capturing device that captures video stream data having video at a first high resolution. A vehicle detection module detects at least one vehicle within the video. A vehicle analysis module is configured to analyze the video and to extract one or more key vehicle features from the video to enable identification of a vehicle of interest (VOI) according to a set of predetermined criteria. A subsampling module creates a reduced resolution video stream in a second subsampled resolution that is lower than the first high resolution while maintaining the one or more extracted key features within the reduced resolution video stream in the first high resolution, and archives the reduced resolution video stream into a video database.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 5, 2011
    Publication date: April 11, 2013
    Applicant: XEROX CORPORATION
    Inventors: Wencheng Wu, Edgar A. Bernal, Robert P. Loce, Martin E. Hoover
  • Patent number: 8416296
    Abstract: Techniques are disclosed for detecting the occurrence of unusual events in a sequence of video frames Importantly, what is determined as unusual need not be defined in advance, but can be determined over time by observing a stream of primitive events and a stream of context events. A mapper component may be configured to parse the event streams and supply input data sets to multiple adaptive resonance theory (ART) networks. Each individual ART network may generate clusters from the set of inputs data supplied to that ART network. Each cluster represents an observed statistical distribution of a particular thing or event being observed that ART network.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 14, 2009
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2013
    Assignee: Behavioral Recognition Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: Wesley Kenneth Cobb, Ming-Jung Seow
  • Patent number: 8416300
    Abstract: Embodiments described herein comprise a system and method for improving visibility of a roadway using an improved visibility system. The method comprising receiving data from a plurality of fog detectors located proximate a roadway and determining, based on the data from the plurality of fog detectors, that fog is present about the roadway. The method further comprising obtaining, after the determining that fog is present about the roadway, a plurality of images of the roadway by activating a plurality of cameras located proximate the roadway. The method further comprising creating a composite image by combining two or more of the plurality of images, wherein the composite image depicts the roadway unobstructed by fog and transmitting the composite image to a display device located in a vehicle traveling along the roadway.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 20, 2009
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2013
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventor: Giuseppe Longobardi
  • Patent number: 8416295
    Abstract: A surveillance data recording device includes a display, a digital tuner, and a control mechanism. The display displays a received surveillance data signal over a first bandwidth. The control mechanism allows a user to select a frequency band of interest. The digital tuner truncates the received signal to produce a narrowband signal comprised only of portions of the received signal that are within the frequency band of interest. A digital storage unit, such as a fixed or removable hard drive or solid state storage device, stores the narrowband signal over a period of time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 24, 2008
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2013
    Assignee: Triasys Technologies Corp.
    Inventors: S. Bert Jones, Gary R. Kenworthy
  • Patent number: 8417062
    Abstract: A coordinate system mapping between each image and the reference image of fisheye images are computed and used to resample each image to align with the reference image directly in the fisheye image space.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 19, 2009
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2013
    Assignee: UT-Battelle, LLC
    Inventors: Jeffery R. Price, Timothy F. Gee
  • Patent number: 8405716
    Abstract: A folding optical path transfer videometrics method for measuring the three-dimensional position and attitude of non-intervisible objects is disclosed. In one aspect, the method includes the following: constructing a folding optic path between an invisible target and a reference, disposing transfer station comprising a camera, a cooperating mark and a laser range finder on each break point in the folding optic path. The method may further include processing an image shot by each camera, accounting for the distance measured by the laser range finder, obtaining a position and posture information corresponding to each adjacent transfer station, summing the values from the reference to the invisible target, and achieving three-dimensional position and posture of the invisible target relating to the reference.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 11, 2009
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2013
    Inventors: Qifeng Yu, Yang Shang, Xiaohua Ding, Xiaohu Zhang, Guangwen Jiang
  • Patent number: 8400329
    Abstract: According to one embodiment, an imaging unit inputs a camera image of surroundings of a vehicle. The surroundings include at least one of a front side and a back side of the vehicle. A first image generation unit generates a mask image to conceal a protection region of personal information included in a region of a first vehicle on the camera image. The first vehicle exists at the front side or the back side of the user's vehicle. A surroundings-monitoring unit decides whether a second vehicle exists at a front side or a back side of the first vehicle by monitoring the camera image. A second image generation unit generates an identification image of the second vehicle when the second vehicle exists. A processing unit generates a composite image by combining the mask image and the identification image with the camera image, and displays the composite image to present to a user of the vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 13, 2010
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2013
    Assignee: Toshiba Alpine Automotive Technology Corporation
    Inventor: Yusuke Kumagami
  • Patent number: 8400507
    Abstract: In V2V or other networks in which multiple video feeds are available to a participant, a participant can select a particular video feed for display. The participant has the option of selecting or locking onto a particular camera so that the display continues to show scenes captured by that camera without regard to what appears in those scenes. As an alternative, the participant may select or lock onto a particular scene. If a scene is selected, the current video feed is analyzed to identify key features. The video feed is monitored. If the key features disappear from the video feed, video feeds available from other cameras are analyzed for the presence of the key features. A new video feed (i.e., camera) is selected from the set of video feeds currently generating images including the key features.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 2008
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2013
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Travis M. Grigsby, Steven Michael Miller, Pamela Ann Nesbitt, Lisa Anne Seacat
  • Patent number: 8396655
    Abstract: A control system for a motor vehicle includes: (a) at least one driving data sensor for acquiring driving data characterizing a driving state of the motor vehicle; (b) at least one camera for capturing images of the surroundings; (c) an accident recorder that can record the images of the surroundings in a buffer; and (d) an electronic controller for controlling the driving data sensor, the camera, and the accident recorder. The electronic controller is programmed to trigger an autonomous braking action of the motor vehicle based on driving data and/or images of the surroundings.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 17, 2008
    Date of Patent: March 12, 2013
    Assignee: WABCO GmbH
    Inventors: Karsten Breuer, Thomas Dieckmann, Hartmut Kitterer
  • Publication number: 20130057691
    Abstract: A method of providing information including providing a communication session of at least one of audio and video media and applying automatic recognition to media transferred on the communication session. An advertisement is selected by a processor, based on the automatic recognition and non-advertisement information is selected by the processor, responsive to the automatic recognition. The selected advertisements and the selected non-advertisement information, are presented during the communication session.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 16, 2012
    Publication date: March 7, 2013
    Inventors: Alon ATSMON, Saar Shai
  • Publication number: 20130050494
    Abstract: The invention relates to an imaging method, including reconstructing a final image (IF) from intensity values inputted by a limited selection of photodetectors (2). One out of every two photodetectors is selected along columns (CDET) and rows (LDET). The final image has a resolution that is double that of a picture within the plane of the photodetectors. With identical resolution, the modulation transfer function is improved relative to an image that would be inputted while using all the photodetectors. Additionally, an image-sensing optical system that is used for an imaging method according to the invention can be of reduced size and weight, having constant resolution and constant modulation transfer functions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 28, 2011
    Publication date: February 28, 2013
    Applicant: ASTRIUM SAS
    Inventors: Laurent Brouard, Cyrille Tourneur
  • Publication number: 20130044219
    Abstract: As set forth herein, systems and methods are described that facilitate to analyze a video stream from a camera mounted on the side of a school bus, wherein a sub-set of video sequences showing cars illegally passing the stopped school bus are automatically identified through image and/or video processing. The described systems and methods provide a significant savings in terms of the amount of manual review that is required to identify such violations. The video sequences also can be analyzed further to additionally produce images of the license plate (for identification of the violator), thereby providing further reduction in required human processing and review time. In one embodiment, automatic license plate recognition (ALPR) is employed to identify text on the violator's license plate, as well as the state by which the license plate was issued, without requiring human review of the license plate image.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 16, 2011
    Publication date: February 21, 2013
    Applicant: XEROX CORPORATION
    Inventors: Aaron M. Burry, Raja Bala, Zhigang Fan
  • Patent number: 8373754
    Abstract: A method and an arrangement for evaluating sensor images of an image-evaluating surroundings-detection system on a moved carrier, preferably a vehicle (1), are proposed, wherein areas in the sensor images captured by a camera (4) which are dark in relation to the surroundings are evaluated in chronologically successive evaluation steps in order to determine whether said dark areas are moving toward the carrier at the speed of said carrier, and in that these dark areas are detected as shadows (7) of a static object and corresponding signaling is performed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 28, 2008
    Date of Patent: February 12, 2013
    Assignee: VALEO Schalter Sensoren GmbH
    Inventors: Andreas Kuehnle, Cathy Boon
  • Patent number: 8368559
    Abstract: A Network of Traffic Behavior-monitoring Unattended Ground Sensors (NeTBUGS) is configurable to detect the passing of vehicles, determine when and where individual vehicles have stopped for a period of time that raises suspicion of illegal or dangerous activity, track the vehicles after the stop and to generate a location-tagged alert for the timely dispatch of a response asset to investigate the anomalous behavior of the vehicle. NeTBUGS sensors are small, camouflaged, easily concealed, and operate for long durations independent of the electrical grid or large, obvious power generators and thus well suited for operation in a hostile environment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 2009
    Date of Patent: February 5, 2013
    Assignee: Raytheon Company
    Inventors: Michael D. Pixley, Martt Harding