PTZ Camera Focus Stability via Field of View Database
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Solution Overview
Problem
Monitoring cameras, especially PTZ cameras, face challenges in efficiently maintaining focus when the field of view changes, particularly in low-light or low-contrast scenes with noise, leading to lost focus and discomfort due to repeated refocusing.
Innovation Solution
A method that retrieves and reuses focusing data from a database for previous field of views that overlap with the current view, allowing the camera to choose the most effective focusing method based on past performance, including algorithms and parameter settings, to achieve faster and more stable focus.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional focusing methods are used for PTZ cameras when field of view changes, then the camera can eventually achieve focus, but the focusing time is prolonged and focus is lost repeatedly during rapid movements or scene changes
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-calculates and stores optimal focusing parameters for different field of view settings in a database. When the camera field of view changes, the system retrieves pre-computed focusing data corresponding to the new field of view setting, eliminating the need for time-consuming real-time focus search and preventing focus loss during rapid movements.
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors the current field of view setting and automatically retrieves appropriate focusing parameters from the database based on the detected field of view. This closed-loop feedback mechanism ensures the camera maintains optimal focus by adapting focusing parameters in real-time according to field of view changes, thereby improving focus stability and reducing refocusing time.
2Manufacturing precision
If the camera performs refocusing to recover clear image after lost focus, then image quality is restored, but the observer experiences discomfort due to repeated coming and going of focus
Solution Approach 1:
By pre-calculating and storing optimal focusing parameters for various field of view settings, the system prevents focus loss before it occurs. When field of view changes are detected, the camera immediately applies the pre-determined focusing parameters, maintaining continuous image sharpness without the repeated focus adjustments that cause observer discomfort.
3Ease of operation
If autofocus methods are used to simplify camera handling, then the camera captures clear images automatically, but focusing efficiency deteriorates in low light or low contrast scenes with noise or dramatic light changes
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses field of view setting feedback to automatically retrieve optimal focusing parameters from the database, bypassing the need for traditional autofocus algorithms that struggle in challenging lighting conditions. This feedback-based approach maintains ease of automatic operation while dramatically improving focusing efficiency by eliminating iterative focus search in low light or low contrast scenes.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention replaces traditional mechanical/optical autofocus systems with an information-based system that uses field of view data to retrieve pre-computed focusing parameters. This substitution eliminates the need for time-consuming optical focus search algorithms, thereby improving focusing efficiency while maintaining automatic operation, especially in challenging lighting conditions where traditional autofocus methods fail.
Data Source
AI summary
A method of focusing a camera with a movable field of view includes obtaining a current field of view setting corresponding to a current field of view of the camera, retrieving, based on the obtained current field of view setting, focusing data pertaining to the focusing method that was previously used to focus the camera for a previous field of view, at least partly overlapping the obtained current field of view, by accessing a focusing assisting database comprising a plurality of camera focusing entries. wherein each camera focusing entry includes a respective previous field of view setting, corresponding to a respective previous field of view and thereto associated focusing data pertaining to the focusing method that was previously used to focus the camera for the respective previous field of view.