Granted Patent B2

US 8,934,671 · App. 13/639,655 · Granted Jan 13, 2015

Abstract

Claims (29)

1. A traffic line creation device for creating a traffic line representing a motion trace of a tracking target, the device comprising:

an object detector that detects the tracking target from a plurality of image frames to create a detected area of the tracking target in each of the plurality of image frames;

a state determiner that determines a state of the tracking target based on the detected area in a current image frame and the detected area in an image frame at the time when the state of the tracking target was a normal state;

a reference point creator that creates a single reference point of the tracking target for the detected area in each of the plurality of image frames, based on a process corresponding to the state determined by the state determiner; and

a traffic line creator that creates a traffic line representing the motion trace of the tracking target by connecting the plurality of reference points created for the plurality of image frames.

2. The traffic line creation device according to claim 1 , wherein the state determiner determines the state of the tracking target based on a temporal change in the detected area.

3. The traffic line creation device according to claim 1 , wherein the state determiner determines the state of the tracking target based on a positional relationship between environment information set in a target space for traffic line creation and the detected area.

4. The traffic line creation device according to claim 1 , wherein, when a particular state other than the normal state is determined by the state determiner, the reference point creator uses the detected area in the current image frame and the detected area in a previous image frame to create the reference point.

5. The traffic line creation device according to claim 1 , wherein the object detector creates, as the detected area, a rectangular frame including the tracking target, the rectangular frame comprising an upper line, a lower line, a right line, and a left line.

6. The traffic line creation device according to claim 5 , wherein

the state determiner compares a current rectangular frame with a previous rectangular frame and, when a movement of the lower line is less than a first threshold and a downward movement of the upper line is greater than a second threshold, determines that a crouching state occurs, and

when the crouching state is determined by the state determiner, the reference point creator employs the upper line of a rectangular frame at the time when the state of the tracking target was the normal state as the upper line of the rectangular frame to create the reference point.

7. The traffic line creation device according to claim 5 , wherein

the state determiner compares a current rectangular frame with a previous rectangular frame and, when movements of the upper line and the lower line are less than a third threshold and a rightward movement of the right line or a leftward movement of the left line is greater than a fourth threshold, determines that a spreading arm state occurs, and

when the spreading arm state is determined by the state determiner, the reference point creator employs the right line or the left line of a rectangular frame at the time when the state of the tracking target was the normal state as the right line or the left line of the rectangular frame to create the reference point.

8. The traffic line creation device according to claim 5 , wherein

when at least one end of the lower line of a current rectangular frame is included in a floor reflection area set in a target space for traffic line creation, the state determiner determines that a floor reflection state occurs, and

when the floor reflection state is determined by the state determiner, the reference point creator employs the lower line of a rectangular frame at the time when the state of the tracking target was the normal state as the lower line of the rectangular frame to create the reference point.

9. The traffic line creation device according to claim 5 , wherein

when the lower line of a current rectangular frame is included in a covered area set in a target space for traffic line creation, the state determiner determines that a covered state occurs, and

when the covered state is determined by the state determiner, the reference point creator employs the lower line of a rectangular frame at the time when the state of the tracking target was the normal state as the lower line of the rectangular frame to create the reference point.

10. The traffic line creation device according to claim 5 , wherein

when a state does not correspond to a particular state other than the normal state but an aspect ratio or a size of the rectangular frame changes over a fifth threshold, the state determiner determines that a noise state occurs, and

when the noise state is determined by the state determiner, the reference point creator averages a plurality of rectangular frames in a period determined to be the noise state to create the reference point.

11. A traffic line creation method for creating a traffic line representing a motion trace of a tracking target, the method comprising:

detecting the tracking target from a plurality of image frames to create a detected area of the tracking target in each of the plurality of image frames;

determining a state of the tracking target based on the detected area in a current image frame and the detected area in an image frame at the time when the state of the tracking target was a normal state;

creating a single reference point of the tracking target for the detected area in each of the plurality of image frames based on a process corresponding to the determined state; and

creating a traffic line representing the motion trace of the tracking target by connecting the plurality of reference points created for the plurality of the image frames.

Assignments (7)