Monitoring device, monitoring system, and monitoring method

Abstract

To make it possible to obtain a sufficient power-saving effect in a monitoring system that uses an EVS as a monitor camera.SOLUTION: A monitoring device includes: an image acquisition unit for acquiring image data showing a variation in the intensity of incident light; an area determination unit for determining a first area to be monitored and a second area not to be monitored in the field of view of the image acquisition unit; and a monitoring unit for outputting a monitoring result of a moving body on the basis of the image data acquired by the image acquisition unit in the first area.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a monitoring device, a monitoring system, and a monitoring method. [Background technology]

[0002] Event-based vision sensors (EVSs) that detect changes in luminance of each pixel are known as image sensors. For example, a camera may be mounted on a vehicle for the purpose of preventing theft. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2022 / 201973 [Patent Document 2] JP 2023-009057 A [Patent Document 3] JP 2023-061207 A [Patent Document 4] JP 2022-163480 A [Patent Document 5] International Publication No. 2022 / 190470 [Patent Document 6] JP 2014-211734 A [Patent Document 7] JP 2012-044404 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] When the vehicle engine is stopped, the various devices installed in the vehicle are powered by the vehicle battery. However, since the capacity of the vehicle battery is limited, there are cases where the long-term monitoring by the vehicle camera is restricted.

[0005] Therefore, it is conceivable to reduce the power consumption of a surveillance system by using an event-based vision sensor (hereinafter referred to as EVS) as a surveillance camera. However, when an EVS is used as a surveillance camera, for example, if a moving object such as a passerby or a moving vehicle is in the field of view of the surveillance camera, the surveillance system will be activated, and sufficient power saving effect may not be obtained.

[0006] An embodiment of the present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and aims to achieve a sufficient power saving effect in a surveillance system that uses an EVS as a surveillance camera. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above problems, a monitoring device according to one embodiment of the present invention has an image acquisition unit that acquires image data showing changes in the intensity of incident light, a region determination unit that determines a first region to be monitored and a second region not to be monitored within the field of view of the image acquisition unit, and a monitoring unit that outputs monitoring results of moving objects based on the image data acquired by the image acquisition unit in the first region. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to one embodiment of the present invention, a sufficient power saving effect can be obtained in a surveillance system that uses an EVS as a surveillance camera. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a system configuration of a monitoring system according to an embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining an overview of a process according to an embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a functional configuration of a monitoring system according to an embodiment; [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of an EVS according to an embodiment. [Diagram 5]FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a functional configuration of a monitoring system according to an embodiment. [Figure 6] 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a monitoring process according to the first embodiment. [Figure 7] 13 is a flowchart showing an example of a region determination process according to the first embodiment. [Figure 8] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a suspicious person detection process according to the first embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining a region changing process according to the second embodiment. [Figure 10] 13 is a flowchart showing an example of an area changing process according to the second embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a system configuration of a monitoring system according to a third embodiment. [Figure 12] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a usage scene of a monitoring system according to an embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of a computer according to an embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0011] <System configuration> Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a system configuration of a monitoring system according to an embodiment. In the example of Fig. 1, the monitoring system 1 includes a monitoring device 100 mounted on a vehicle 10 such as an automobile, and an information processing device 101.

[0012] The monitoring device 100 is a monitoring camera that uses an event-based vision sensor (EVS) to acquire EVS image data showing changes in luminance inside the vehicle 10, or a device that includes the monitoring camera. The event-based vision sensor (hereinafter referred to as EVS) is an image sensor that detects changes in luminance of each pixel and outputs only the changed data in combination with "coordinates" and "time information." Note that the EVS may also be called by other names, such as a dynamic vision sensor.

[0013] 1, the monitoring device 100 is installed in the rear of the cabin of the vehicle 10, and acquires EVS image data (hereinafter referred to as image data) of the cabin from the rear of the cabin. The monitoring device 100 monitors moving objects in the cabin of the vehicle 10 based on the acquired image data, and outputs the monitoring results of the moving objects to the information processing device 101.

[0014] The information processing device 101 is a computer that executes a predetermined process based on the monitoring result of the moving object output by the monitoring device 100. The information processing device 101 may be an electronic control unit (ECU) provided in the vehicle 10, or may be a computer separate from the electronic control unit provided in the vehicle 10.

[0015] The information processing device 101 judges whether or not the detected moving object is a suspicious person based on the moving object monitoring result output by the monitoring device 100. Furthermore, when the information processing device 101 judges that the detected moving object is a suspicious person, it outputs warning information to a predetermined output destination.

[0016] (Processing Overview) Fig. 2 is a diagram for explaining an overview of processing according to an embodiment. Fig. 200 shows an image of the field of view of the EVS provided in the monitoring device 100. In this example, the monitoring device 100 is installed so that the driver's seat, the windshield 211, the side windows 212 and 213, etc., are included in the field of view of the EVS from the rear of the cabin of the vehicle 10.

[0017] The EVS detects changes in luminance of each pixel, and when the change in luminance of a pixel exceeds a predetermined value, it outputs image data indicating the change in luminance. Since changes in luminance of a pixel occur when the subject moves, if there is no moving object (hereinafter referred to as a moving object) within the field of view of the EVS, the EVS does not output image data.

[0018] Therefore, it is possible to reduce the power consumption of the surveillance system by using the EVS as a surveillance camera. For example, by putting the information processing device 101 into a power saving state when the surveillance result of a moving object is not input, and activating the information processing device 101 when the surveillance result of a moving object is input from the surveillance device 100, it is possible to reduce the power consumption of the information processing device 101 when there is no moving object within the field of view of the EVS.

[0019] However, for example, when the vehicle 10 is parked near a road with heavy traffic, a pedestrian 201 passing on the road or another vehicle 202 may enter the field of view of the EVS through the windshield 211, etc., as shown in Fig. 2. In this case, even if there is no moving object inside the vehicle 10, the EVS outputs the monitoring result of the moving object, and the information processing device 101 starts up, which causes a problem that a sufficient power saving effect cannot be obtained.

[0020] Therefore, the monitoring device 100 according to this embodiment has a function of setting areas where luminance changes frequently occur, such as the windshield 211 and side windows 212 and 213, as non-monitored areas, and setting areas other than the non-monitored areas as monitored areas. Furthermore, the monitoring device 100 monitors the monitored areas, and when it detects a moving object in the monitored area, it outputs the detection result of the moving object to the information processing device 101.

[0021] As a result, when there is no moving object inside the cabin of the vehicle 10, the monitoring device 100 will not output the monitoring results of a moving object due to a pedestrian 201 passing on the road or another vehicle 202, etc., thereby preventing unnecessary startup of the information processing device 101.

[0022] As described above, according to this embodiment, in the surveillance system 1 that uses the EVS as a surveillance camera, a sufficient power saving effect can be obtained.

[0023] <Functional configuration> 3 is a diagram (1) showing an example of the functional configuration of a monitoring system according to an embodiment of the present invention. This diagram shows an example of the functional configuration of a monitoring system 1 in the case where a monitoring device 100 is a monitoring camera.

[0024] (Functional configuration of monitoring device) In the example of FIG. 3, the monitoring device (monitoring camera) 100 has functional components such as an image acquisition unit 301, a region determination unit 302, a control unit 303, and a monitoring unit 304.

[0025] The image acquisition unit 301 is realized by, for example, a light receiving element (sensor array) of an EVS, and executes an image acquisition process to acquire image data indicating a change in intensity (change in brightness) of incident light. For example, the image acquisition unit 301 determines whether or not the change in brightness of light captured for each pixel exceeds a predetermined value, and acquires image data (EVS image data) indicating the change in brightness of the pixel that exceeds the predetermined value.

[0026] The region determination unit 302 executes a region determination process for determining a monitoring region (first region) where monitoring is performed and a non-monitoring region (second region) where monitoring is not performed in the field of view (field of view of EVS) of the image acquisition unit 301. For example, the region determination unit 302 determines a region in which the frequency of luminance changes is equal to or greater than a threshold as a non-monitoring region (second region) in the image data acquired by the image acquisition unit 301, and determines a region in which the frequency of luminance changes is less than the threshold as a monitoring region (first region).

[0027] The region determining unit 302 may be realized by a program executed by a computer included in the monitoring device 100, or may be realized by hardware included in the monitoring device 100.

[0028] The control unit 303 executes a control process for controlling an area from which the image acquiring unit 301 acquires image data, within the field of view of the image acquiring unit 301, based on the monitored area and non-monitored area determined by the area determining unit 302. The control unit 303 is realized, for example, by hardware configured on the EVS included in the monitoring device 100.

[0029] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of an EVS according to an embodiment. In the EVS 400 according to this embodiment, for example, a mask 420 is arranged on a light receiving unit 410 having a sensor array 411. The mask 420 has, for example, a light shielding unit 421 having a liquid crystal whose light transmittance changes when a voltage is applied, and a control unit 303 that controls the light shielding unit 421. The light shielding unit 421 is arranged so as to overlap with the sensor array 411 in a planar view, and can reduce (shield) the light transmittance of an arbitrary region 423 of the sensor array 411 according to the control from the control unit 303. Note that the control unit 303 may be provided in the light receiving unit 410 instead of the mask 420.

[0030] 4, the control unit 303 controls the light blocking unit 421 to reduce light transmittance at a position corresponding to the non-monitored area of ​​the sensor array 411. In this way, the control unit 303 can block light received by the light receiving elements of the sensor array 411 corresponding to the non-monitored area, suppress a change in luminance, and perform control not to monitor the conductors in the non-monitored area.

[0031] 4 is an example. For example, the control unit 303 may control an area from which the image acquisition unit 301 acquires image data by using software executed by a computer included in the monitoring device 100, a signal processing circuit, a DSP (Digital Signal Processor), or the like.

[0032] Returning now to Fig. 3, the functional configuration of the monitoring device 100 will be described further. The monitoring unit 304 executes a monitoring process for outputting a monitoring result of a moving object based on image data acquired by the image acquisition unit 301 in the monitoring area (first area) determined by the area determination unit 302. For example, the monitoring unit 304 monitors a luminance change in the image data acquired by the image acquisition unit 301 in the monitoring area, and outputs information on the luminance change of the acquired image data as a monitoring result to the information processing device 101. Here, when no luminance change occurs in the monitoring area or when the luminance change is less than a threshold, the monitoring unit 304 does not output the monitoring result to the information processing device 101. Also, the monitoring unit 304 may set the threshold so that a luminance change caused by, for example, noise can be excluded.

[0033] (Functional configuration of information processing device) The information processing device 101 includes, for example, an image processing unit 311, an AI (Artificial Intelligence) It includes a processing unit 312, an authentication unit 313, and an output unit 314.

[0034] The image processing unit 311 performs image processing such as noise removal on the monitoring result (image showing a luminance change) acquired from the monitoring unit 304. The image processing unit 311 is realized by, for example, a program executed by a computer included in the information processing device 101, a signal processing circuit, or the like.

[0035] The AI ​​processing unit 312 judges whether or not the area to be monitored (for example, the interior of the vehicle 10) is safe in the monitoring result image-processed by the image processing unit 311, and outputs the monitoring result to the authentication unit 313 when it judges that the area is not safe. For example, the AI ​​processing unit 312 inputs the monitoring result image-processed by the image processing unit 311 to a machine learning model that is trained in advance using a plurality of monitoring results and teacher data indicating whether each monitoring result is safe, and judges whether or not the monitoring result is safe. For example, the AI ​​processing unit 312 may judge that the monitoring result is not safe when a person is included in the monitoring result image-processed by the image processing unit 311. The AI ​​processing unit 312 is realized by, for example, a program executed by a computer included in the information processing device 101.

[0036] The authentication unit 313 compares the monitoring result acquired from the AI ​​processing unit 312 with the authentication information 315 to determine whether a person included in the monitoring result is a legitimate user or a suspicious person. The authentication unit 313 is realized, for example, by a program executed by a computer included in the information processing device 101.

[0037] The output unit 314 outputs warning information when the authentication unit 313 determines that a person included in the monitoring result is not a legitimate user (determines that the person is a suspicious person). The output unit 314 is realized, for example, by a program executed by a computer included in the information processing device 101. Note that a specific example of processing executed by the monitoring system 1 in response to this warning information will be described later.

[0038] 3 is just an example. For example, the monitoring system 1 may have a functional configuration as shown in FIG.

[0039] 5 is a diagram (2) showing an example of a functional configuration of a monitoring system according to an embodiment. In the example of FIG. 5, the monitoring device 100 includes a monitoring camera 501 and an information processing device (control unit) 101.

[0040] 5, a surveillance camera 501 has an image acquisition unit 301, an area determination unit 302, a control unit 303, and a surveillance unit 304, similar to the surveillance device (surveillance camera) 100 described in FIG. 3. Also, an information processing device (control unit) 101 has an image processing unit 311, an AI processing unit 312, an authentication unit 313, and an output unit 314, similar to the information processing device 101 described in FIG. 3. In this manner, the information processing device 101 may be included in the surveillance device 100 as the control unit of the surveillance device 100.

[0041] <Processing flow> Next, the process flow of the monitoring method according to this embodiment will be described.

[0042] [First embodiment] (Monitoring process) Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of a monitoring process according to the first embodiment. This process shows an example of a monitoring process executed by a monitoring system 1 having a functional configuration as shown in Fig. 3 or Fig. 5, for example.

[0043] In step S601, the region determination unit 302 executes a region determination process for determining a monitoring region (first region) in which a moving object (or brightness change) is monitored, and a non-monitoring region (second region) in which a moving object is not monitored, within the field of view of the image acquisition unit 301. As an example, the region determination unit 302 sets regions with high frequency of brightness changes, such as the windshield 211 and side windows 212 and 213 of the vehicle 10, as non-monitoring regions, and sets regions other than the non-monitoring regions as monitoring regions, as described in FIG. 2. A specific example of the region determination process will be described later.

[0044] In step S602, the monitoring device 100 monitors the monitoring area determined by the area determination unit 302. For example, the control unit 303 controls the light blocking unit 421 described in FIG. 4 to block the non-monitoring area determined by the area determination unit 302. As a result, the image acquisition unit 301 acquires image data indicating a luminance change of a pixel exceeding a predetermined value in the monitoring area determined by the area determination unit 302. In addition, the monitoring unit 304 monitors the luminance change of the image data acquired in the monitoring area by the image acquisition unit 301, and when there is a luminance change, outputs information on the luminance change of the acquired image data to the information processing device 101 as a monitoring result (monitoring result of a moving object).

[0045] In step S603, if the information processing device 101 receives the monitoring result from the monitoring unit 304, the information processing device 101 executes the processes from step S604 onward. On the other hand, if the information processing device 101 does not receive the monitoring result from the monitoring unit 304, the monitoring system 1 returns the process to step S602.

[0046] In step S604, the information processing device 101 executes a suspicious person detection process to detect a suspicious person based on the monitoring result received from the monitoring unit 304. Note that a specific example of the suspicious person detection process will be described later.

[0047] In step S605, if a suspicious individual is detected in the suspicious individual detection process, the information processing device 101 shifts the process to step S606. On the other hand, if a suspicious individual is not detected in the suspicious individual detection process, the information processing device 101 shifts the process to step S607.

[0048] In step S606, the output unit 314 outputs warning information to a predetermined output destination.

[0049] In step S607, the monitoring system 1 determines whether or not to end the monitoring process. For example, the monitoring system 1 may determine to end the monitoring process when the ignition power of the vehicle 10 is turned on. If the monitoring process is to be ended, the monitoring system 1 ends the process of Fig. 6. On the other hand, if the monitoring process is not to be ended, the monitoring system 1 returns the process to step S602.

[0050] By the process of FIG. 6, the monitoring system 1 can suppress unnecessary activation of the information processing device 101 when there is no change in luminance within the monitoring area determined in step S601 (when there is no moving object within the passenger compartment of the vehicle 10).

[0051] 6 is an example. For example, the monitoring device 100 may execute the area determination process again when a predetermined time has elapsed since executing the area determination process in step S601, to update the monitored area and the non-monitored area.

[0052] (Area determination process) 7 is a flowchart showing an example of region determination processing according to the first embodiment. This processing shows an example of region determination processing executed by the region determination unit 302 in step S601 in FIG.

[0053] In step S701, the region determining unit 302, without setting a non-monitoring region, obtains image data for a predetermined period from the image obtaining unit 301. Here, the "predetermined period" may be a fixed value determined in advance (for example, about several seconds to several minutes), or may be dynamically determined by the region determining unit 302 depending on the presence or absence of a change in luminance, etc.

[0054] In step S702, the region determination unit 302 calculates the frequency of luminance changes for each region from the acquired image data. Here, the "region" may be, for example, a region including pixels whose luminance changes are equal to or greater than a predetermined value determined by the region determination unit 302, or may be a mesh-shaped region of a predetermined size.

[0055] In step S703, the region determination unit 302 determines whether or not there is a region where the frequency of luminance changes is equal to or greater than the threshold. If there is a region where the frequency is equal to or greater than the threshold, the region determination unit 302 moves the process to step S704. On the other hand, if there is no region where the frequency is equal to or greater than the threshold, the region determination unit 302 ends the process in FIG.

[0056] In step S704, the region determination unit 302 sets a region in which the frequency of luminance changes is equal to or greater than a threshold as a non-monitored region. Note that, in the field of view of the image acquisition unit 301, a region other than the non-monitored region becomes a monitored region.

[0057] (Detection of suspicious individuals) 8 is a flowchart showing an example of a suspicious person detection process according to the first embodiment. This process shows an example of a suspicious person detection process executed by the information processing device 101 in, for example, step S604 in FIG.

[0058] In step S801, the image processing unit 311 performs image processing such as noise removal on the monitoring result (image showing a change in luminance) acquired from the monitoring unit 304.

[0059] In steps S802 and S803, the AI ​​processing unit 312 judges whether or not the monitored area (e.g., the interior of the vehicle 10) is safe based on the monitoring results image-processed by the image processing unit 311. For example, the AI ​​processing unit 312 inputs the monitoring results to a machine learning model that has been trained in advance to predict whether or not the interior of the vehicle is safe based on the monitoring results, and judges whether or not it is safe. If it is judged to be safe, the information processing device 101 shifts the process to step S804. On the other hand, if it is judged to be unsafe, the information processing device 101 shifts the process to step S805.

[0060] In step S804, the information processing device 101 determines that no suspicious individual has been detected.

[0061] On the other hand, in step S805, the authentication unit 313 compares the acquired monitoring result with the authentication information 315 to execute authentication processing to determine whether the person included in the monitoring result is a legitimate user.

[0062] In step S806, if the person included in the monitoring result is a valid user, the information processing device shifts the process to step S804. On the other hand, if the person included in the monitoring result is not a valid user, the information processing device shifts the process to step S807.

[0063] In step S807, the information processing device 101 determines that a suspicious individual has been detected.

[0064] The process in Fig. 8 is an example of a suspicious person detection process executed by the information processing device 101. For example, the process in step S801 may be executed by the monitoring unit 304, the AI ​​processing unit 312, or the like, or may be omitted. In addition, in step S805, the authentication unit 313 may authenticate whether or not a person in the vehicle 10 is a legitimate user by requesting biometric authentication, password authentication, or the like from the person in the vehicle 10 instead of (or in addition to) the acquired monitoring result. In addition, the authentication process in step S805 may be omitted.

[0065] As described above, according to the first embodiment, in the surveillance system 1 that uses an EVS as a surveillance camera, the power consumption of the information processing device 101 can be reduced by setting a non-surveillance area and suppressing the output of unnecessary surveillance results.

[0066] [Second embodiment] Fig. 9 is a diagram for explaining the area change process according to the second embodiment. A diagram 910 at the top of Fig. 9 shows an image of the field of view of the image acquisition unit 301. In Fig. 910, it is assumed that non-monitored areas 911, 912, and 913 are set on the windshield and the left and right side windows of the vehicle 10 as described in Fig. 2.

[0067] In this state, for example, it is assumed that a moving object (e.g., a suspicious person) 901 is detected in a monitoring area other than the non-monitoring areas 911, 912, and 913. In this case, the monitoring device 100 changes the non-monitoring area (second area) near the moving object 901 to a monitoring area (first area) as shown in the lower diagram 920 of FIG.

[0068] For example, in the example of FIG. 920, the monitoring device 100 reduces the non-monitored area 911 in FIG. 910 to a non-monitored area 921 in FIG. 920, thereby changing the non-monitored area near the moving object 901 to a monitored area. However, without being limited to this, the monitoring device 100 may change the non-monitored area near the moving object 901 to a monitored area by changing the non-monitored area 911 in FIG. 910 to a monitored area. Alternatively, the monitoring device 100 may change the non-monitored area near the moving object 901 to a monitored area by setting the non-monitored areas 911, 912, and 913 in FIG. 910 as non-monitored areas.

[0069] Note that the moving object monitored by the monitoring system 1 is not limited to a suspicious person or an object in the vehicle cabin, and may be, for example, a door of the vehicle 10. For example, when the right door of the vehicle 10 is opened or closed, the monitoring device 100 may change the non-monitored area near the right door (for example, the non-monitored area 912) to the monitored area.

[0070] <Processing flow> Fig. 10 is a flowchart showing an example of an area change process according to the second embodiment. The monitoring device 100 according to the second embodiment repeatedly executes, for example, the process of Fig. 10 in parallel with the monitoring process according to the first embodiment described in Fig. 6.

[0071] In step S1001, the region determination unit 302 determines whether or not a moving object has been detected in the monitoring region based on the image data acquired by the image acquisition unit 301. If a moving object has not been detected in the monitoring region, the region determination unit 302 ends (or re-executes) the process of Fig. 10. On the other hand, if a moving object has been detected in the monitoring region, the region determination unit 302 transitions the process to step S1002.

[0072] In step S1002, the region determination unit 302 changes the non-monitoring region (second region) in the vicinity of the detected moving object to a monitoring region (first region). For example, as described in FIG. 9, the region determination unit 302 reduces the non-monitoring region 911 in the vicinity of the detected moving object 901 to set it as a non-monitoring region 921. However, this is not limited to the above, and the region determination unit 302 may set the entire non-monitoring region 911 of the detected moving object 901 in FIG. 9 as the monitoring region. Alternatively, the region determination unit 302 may set all the non-monitoring regions 911, 912, and 913 as the monitoring region. In this way, it is sufficient for the region determination unit 302 to change at least the non-monitoring region in the vicinity of the detected moving object to a monitoring region in step S1002.

[0073] According to the second embodiment, the monitoring system 1 can facilitate monitoring of a moving object and improve the monitoring accuracy of the moving object.

[0074] [Third embodiment] In the third embodiment, an example of use of warning information output by the information processing device 101 will be described.

[0075] Fig. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a system configuration of a monitoring system according to a third embodiment. In the example of Fig. 11, a vehicle 10 includes a communication unit 1101 and a vehicle disable unit 1102 in addition to a monitoring device 100 and an information processing device 101. Here, the monitoring device 100 and the information processing device 101 are, for example, the monitoring device 100 and the information processing device 101 according to the first embodiment or the second embodiment.

[0076] The communication unit 1101 is realized by, for example, an electronic control unit (ECU) provided in the vehicle 10, and a wireless communication module that connects the vehicle 10 to the communication network N. When the communication unit 1101 receives warning information from the information processing device 101, it notifies the owner of the vehicle 10 or a predetermined notification destination such as a pre-set security company via an external server 1110 that there is a moving object (suspicious person, etc.) inside the vehicle 10.

[0077] In this way, the monitoring system 1 according to the third embodiment can quickly notify a predetermined notification destination that there is a risk of the vehicle 10 being stolen. Note that the function of the communication unit 1101 may be included in the information processing device 101.

[0078] The vehicle disable unit 1102 is realized, for example, by an electronic control device or the like provided in the vehicle 10, and disables (puts) the vehicle 10 in an inoperable state when warning information is received from the information processing device 101. For example, the vehicle disable unit 1102 may prevent the engine of the vehicle 10 from starting by software processing, or may destroy some of the components of the vehicle 10 (for example, by blowing a fuse or blowing an e-fuse in a semiconductor chip, etc.).

[0079] This puts the vehicle 10 in an inoperable state, so that even if the vehicle 10 is stolen, its economic value when it is bought and sold is reduced, thereby reducing the motivation to steal a vehicle. Note that the owner of the vehicle 10 (legitimate user) can restore the vehicle 10 to an operating state by taking the disabled vehicle 10 to an authorized dealer or the like and replacing damaged parts or performing batch processing of the software, or the like.

[0080] In this way, the information processing device 101 controls the disabling of the vehicle 10 based on the monitoring result of the moving object in the vehicle cabin, using the vehicle disabling unit 1102. Note that the function of the vehicle disabling unit 1102 may be included in the information processing device 101.

[0081] Vehicle 10 may have either communication unit 1101 or vehicle disable unit 1102. In addition, vehicle 10 is preferably configured such that a user can set whether or not to enable the function of vehicle disable unit 1102.

[0082] <Examples of usage scenarios> In the first to third embodiments, the monitoring system 1 has been described as detecting the intrusion of a suspicious person into the vehicle 10. However, the monitoring system 1 is not limited to this, and can be applied to various other uses.

[0083] For example, the monitoring system 1 can also be used for monitoring purposes, in which if a moving object is detected inside the vehicle 10 after the vehicle 10 is locked, the driver who locked the vehicle 10 or a specified notification destination such as a security company is notified that a passenger has been left behind in the vehicle 10.

[0084] Furthermore, the present embodiment is not limited to being applied inside the vehicle 10, but can also be applied to, for example, a surveillance camera or the like installed indoors or outdoors.

[0085] 12 is a diagram showing an example of a usage scene of the monitoring system according to an embodiment. For example, the monitoring system 1 may be a system in which a monitoring device 100 having a monitoring camera 501 and an information processing device 101 is installed indoors to monitor a moving object (e.g., a suspicious person) in the room.

[0086] FIG. 1200 shows an image of the field of view of the image acquisition unit 301 (or EVS) of the monitoring device 100. In this example, the monitoring device 100 is installed indoors, and is installed so that the indoor space including a window 1201 is within the field of view of the image acquisition unit 301.

[0087] In this case, the monitoring device 100 can monitor indoor moving objects (such as the intrusion of a suspicious person) while suppressing the power consumption of the information processing device 101 by setting a window 1201 where outdoor movement that is not the target of monitoring is occurring as a non-monitored area 1202. Note that the monitoring device 100 can set areas where movement is occurring, such as indoor TV screens, aquarium fish tanks, or pet cages, without being limited to the window 1201, as non-monitored areas.

[0088] <Hardware configuration> The information processing device 101 in FIG. 3 and the monitoring device 100 in FIG. 5 each include, for example, a hardware configuration of a computer 1300 as shown in FIG.

[0089] 13 is a diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of a computer according to an embodiment. The computer 1300 includes, for example, a processor 1301, a memory 1302, a storage device 1303, an I / F (Interface) 1304, an input device 1305, an output device 1306, a communication device 1307, and a bus 1308.

[0090] The processor 1301 is, for example, an arithmetic device such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) that executes a predetermined process by executing a program stored in a storage medium such as a storage device 1303. The memory 1302 includes, for example, a RAM (Random Access Memory) that is a volatile memory used as a work area or the like for the processor 1301, and a ROM (Read Only Memory) that is a non-volatile memory that stores a program for starting up the processor 1301, etc. The storage device 1303 is, for example, a large-capacity non-volatile storage device such as an SSD (Solid State Drive) or an HDD (Hard Disk Drive). The I / F 1304 includes various interfaces for connecting an external device to the computer 1300.

[0091] The input device 1305 includes various devices (e.g., a keyboard, a touch panel, a pointing device, a microphone, a switch, a button, a sensor, or the like) that accept input from the outside. The output device 1306 includes various devices (e.g., a display, a speaker, an indicator, or the like) that perform output to the outside. The communication device 1307 includes various communication devices for communicating with other devices via a wired or wireless network. The bus 1308 is connected to each of the above components and transmits, for example, address signals, data signals, and various control signals.

[0092] As described above, according to each embodiment of the present invention, a sufficient power saving effect can be obtained in a surveillance system that uses an EVS as a surveillance camera.

[0093] Although an embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to such a specific embodiment, and various modifications and changes are possible within the scope of the gist of the present invention described in the claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0094] 1. Surveillance System 10 Vehicles 100 Monitoring equipment 101 Information processing device 301 Image Acquisition Unit 302 Area determination section 303 Control Unit 304 Monitoring Department 1101 Communications Department 1102 Vehicle Disabled Section

Claims

1. an image acquisition unit that acquires image data indicating a change in the intensity of incident light; a region determining unit that determines a first region to be monitored and a second region not to be monitored within a field of view of the image acquiring unit; a monitoring unit that outputs a monitoring result of a moving object based on the image data acquired by the image acquisition unit in the first area; A monitoring device having the following features:

2. The change in the light intensity includes a change in luminance, The region determination unit determines, as the second region, a region in the image data acquired by the image acquisition unit where the frequency of the luminance change is equal to or greater than a threshold value. The monitoring device according to claim 1.

3. a light shielding unit that shields a predetermined area from light in a field of view of the image acquisition unit; a control unit that controls the predetermined area so as to block light from the second area in a field of view of the image acquisition unit; 3. The monitoring device according to claim 1 or 2, comprising:

4. When the monitoring unit detects a moving object in the first area, the region determination unit changes the second region in the vicinity of the moving object to the first region; 3. A monitoring device according to claim 1 or 2.

5. A monitoring system including the monitoring device according to claim 1 and an information processing device, The monitoring device outputs the monitoring results of the moving object to the information processing device.

6. The surveillance system according to claim 5 , wherein the information processing device outputs predetermined warning information based on a result of the detection of the moving object.

7. the monitoring device is a monitoring camera mounted on a vehicle, The monitoring system according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the information processing device controls disabling of the vehicle based on a result of monitoring the moving object.

8. The monitoring system according to claim 7 , wherein the information processing device is an electronic control device provided in the vehicle.

9. an image acquisition unit that acquires image data indicating a change in the intensity of incident light; a region determining unit that determines a first region to be monitored and a second region not to be monitored within a field of view of the image acquiring unit; a monitoring unit that outputs a monitoring result of a moving object based on the image data acquired by the image acquisition unit in the first area; A monitoring system having:

10. The monitoring device, an image acquisition process for acquiring image data indicative of a change in the intensity of the incident light; a region determination process for determining a first region to be monitored and a second region not to be monitored within a field of view of the image acquisition process; a monitoring process for outputting a monitoring result of a moving object based on the image data acquired by the image acquisition process in the first area; Execute the monitoring method.

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