Virtual Zone Camera Parameter Updates in Video Surveillance

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional security systems, particularly those using surveillance cameras, often fail to effectively detect and record threats in high-occupancy areas like airports or industrial settings due to limitations in camera configuration and recording quality, leading to potential missed threats and suboptimal video evidence.

Innovation Solution

A security system that allows operators to dynamically adjust video quality parameters based on perceived risk levels within a secured area, enhancing image quality in high-risk zones while conserving bandwidth by reducing it in low-risk areas, using a user-friendly interface to identify and select areas of interest and automatically recording cameras in high-risk zones.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If video quality parameters are increased for all cameras to improve detection capability, then measurement precision is improved, but use of energy and bandwidth increase significantly

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvevideo qualityVSAvoidbandwidth
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The system applies different video quality settings to different spatial zones within the secured area. High-risk zones receive high-quality video parameters (higher resolution, frame rate, and bitrate) while low-risk zones use lower quality parameters, thereby optimizing detection precision where needed while conserving bandwidth in areas requiring less surveillance.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

The video quality parameters are dynamically adjusted based on real-time risk assessment of different zones. When a zone transitions from low-risk to high-risk status, the system automatically increases video quality parameters for that specific zone, and vice versa, allowing flexible adaptation to changing security conditions without maintaining high bandwidth usage across all areas continuously.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

2Reliability

If more cameras are monitored at high quality to improve security coverage, then reliability is improved, but device complexity and processing requirements increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesecurity detection capabilityVSAvoidsystem complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system divides the surveillance area into multiple zones with different risk levels and applies appropriate monitoring intensity to each zone. High-risk zones receive full high-quality monitoring while low-risk zones use reduced monitoring, thereby maintaining high security reliability for critical areas without the complexity and resource burden of uniformly high-quality monitoring across all areas.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

3Measurement precision

If video quality is increased for recording threats, then measurement precision is improved, but loss of energy increases due to continuous high-quality recording

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvethreat detection qualityVSAvoidbandwidth consumption
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The system records video at high quality only in zones identified as high-risk, while using lower quality recording in low-risk zones. This selective approach ensures that threat detection quality is optimized where threats are most likely to occur, while minimizing bandwidth consumption and energy loss in areas with lower threat probability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

The recording quality is dynamically adjusted based on the risk level of each zone. When a zone transitions to high-risk status, the system automatically increases recording quality for that zone, and when the risk level decreases, the quality is reduced, thereby optimizing energy efficiency while maintaining detection capability when needed.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Data Source

PatentEP2934004B1System and method of virtual zone based camera parameter updates in video surveillance systems
Publication Date: 2020.03.18 HONEYWELL INTERNATIONAL INC
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AI summary

A method and system that includes a processor of a surveillance system detecting identification of a portion of a secured area via a drawing made by an operator on a graphical representation of the secured area, the processor identifying at least one camera within the identified portion of the secured area, the processor increasing a relative level of picture quality for each of the at least one camera and the processor recording video with the increased level of picture quality from each of the identified at least one camera for a predetermined time period where the picture quality is increased by performing one or more of increasing image resolution, increasing frames per second, decreasing a group of pictures (GOP) value, decreasing a compression ratio and increasing a bit rate.