Video Surveillance Object Tracking via Timestamp Metadata
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current video surveillance systems face challenges in efficiently tracking and investigating the history of suspicious objects, leading to delays in responding to security breaches due to the need for manual playback and retrieval of video clips, which consumes valuable time and resources.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus that allow for the selection and display of video clips associated with object creation or disappearance times, incorporating object creation information into video frames, and generating alarms based on predetermined parameters, while constructing a site map to track objects across multiple camera views, enabling rapid investigation and tracking of objects between neighboring fields of view.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If manual playback and retrieval of video clips is used to investigate suspicious objects, then complete historical information can be obtained, but valuable time is lost due to time-consuming operations
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by automatically capturing and storing metadata (timestamps, location data, object characteristics) when suspicious objects are first detected. This pre-processing enables rapid retrieval without manual playback, resolving the contradiction between complete information availability and investigation time.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary mechanism - a database storing pre-extracted object information and video clip metadata - that mediates between the video storage system and the investigation process. This intermediary enables fast querying and selective playback of only relevant clips, eliminating the need to manually review entire video histories while preserving access to complete information when needed.
2Area of stationary object
If multiple cameras are deployed to cover large areas, then surveillance coverage is improved, but tracking objects across camera boundaries becomes complex and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements feedback mechanisms where detected objects trigger automatic tracking across camera boundaries. When an object is detected in one camera's field of view, the system uses metadata and spatial relationships to automatically identify and switch to the relevant neighboring camera, providing continuous tracking without manual intervention and reducing operational complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates copies of object information and tracking data across multiple camera systems. Each camera system maintains a copy of relevant object metadata and can independently display or analyze the same object from its perspective, enabling parallel processing and simplifying the coordination complexity of multi-camera tracking.
3Speed
If alerts are generated immediately upon detecting suspicious situations, then response time is improved, but alert overload occurs reducing system effectiveness
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies local quality by differentiating alert priorities and characteristics based on the specific suspicious situation detected. Different object types, locations, and behaviors generate alerts with different priorities and handling procedures, allowing critical threats to receive immediate attention while filtering out less serious events, thus improving response speed for important cases without generating overwhelming numbers of low-priority alerts.
Data Source
AI summary
A method and apparatus for the investigation of an object or an event in a video clip, by playing video clips of the object or objects associated with the events. The video frames comprised within the video clips comprise information regarding the creation time and coordinates of the objects appearing in multiple frames, thus enabling an operator to immediately play video clips tracking the object starting at the object's creation time within the field of view, until its disappearance from the field of view. By defining neighboring regions, and keeping the creation time of each object within each video stream, an object is tracked between different fields of view.