Abstract:
Housings for surveillance devices are disclosed. In an embodiment, a housing is formed by securing a body to a hood at a sloped frame member to provide adequate sealing to protect the camera against the environment and damage. In another embodiment, the body of the housing is suitably adapted for particular applications including corner mounting. In accordance with a particular feature of the present invention, the hood includes a cylindrical aperture which provides a wide viewing angle for the device.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]    The priority date for this Utility Patent Application is established by Provisional Patent Application No. 60/378,591, for which the filing date was May 8, 2002 and the application was entitled “Surveillance Camera Housing,” the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. 
     
    
     
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    The present invention relates to surveillance devices, and more particularly to such devices having housings that allow for wide angle fields of view and flexible mounting of such devices in various locations.  
           [0003]    With the advent of miniature video cameras, such as CCD (charged coupled device) cameras, surveillance products or devices incorporating such miniature cameras have dramatically proliferated, spawning unprecedented growth in the surveillance industry. Although some surveillance cameras raise immediate concerns regarding privacy, many industries today must use hidden cameras as an additional security measure in order to protect their inventory, premises and customers. For instance, financial institutions often use surveillance cameras to offer additional protection to their customers and to help guard against theft. Surveillance cameras are also being used more frequently in the home for the protection of children and personal property.  
           [0004]    Within the surveillance industry, there are two types of surveillance activities. In the first instance, surveillance cameras are often mounted in enclosures that allow such devices to be hidden or discrete. In contrast, such cameras are also often mounted in devices which are overt and can be seen rather easily. Whether employed in an overt or discrete application, surveillance devices provide benefit either by recording activity or deterring certain activity.  
           [0005]    Surveillance devices are required to be mounted in many different locations and under many different environmental conditions. In particular, the devices are required to be flexible enough to be mounted in a corner, ceiling, or along a corridor, while also providing a requisite viewing angle. For example, surveillance of a corridor requires an approximate viewing angle of 180°, extending in opposite directions down the corridor. For a ceiling mounted application, a larger field of view is typically required. In addition to the various mounting locations and the wide angle of view required, the housing of such surveillance devices must be built to keep dust, moisture, and other possible contaminants from entering the interior where the cameras are mounted. Such contaminants typically affect the reliability of the camera thereby adding to the expense of performing surveillance.  
           [0006]    The foregoing factors place constraints on the housing designs for surveillance devices. Specifically, while surveillance devices must be manufactured at a cost that the market will bear, such devices must also be flexible, provide wide angles of view, and provide an adequate environment for housing the cameras themselves.  
           [0007]    With respect to providing a wide-angle field of view, prior art housings typically provide a limited field of view because the radial center of the view aperture and the focal point of the camera cannot be arranged so as to coincide with each other within the surveillance housing. Such limitations are imposed by both the curvature of the viewing aperture and the size of the curvature&#39;s opening, which partly depends on the size of the housing. These limitations prevent prior art housings and the camera housed therein from providing the wide-angle field of views required for many surveillance application.  
           [0008]    The prior art is deficient in satisfying the needs of the surveillance industry based on the aforementioned factors and constraints. Of utility then is an apparatus for housing a surveillance camera that can be mounted in a variety of locations, thereby supporting a variety of applications, that provides a substantially airtight environment for the cameras, and that is priced to meet the demands of the marketplace.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0009]    In view of the shortcomings of the prior art, one aspect of the present invention is a housing for a surveillance camera which includes a back wall, at least one side wall extending transversely from the back wall to form a partial enclosure operable to house at least one surveillance camera, and a cylindrical front wall having a substantially cylindrical aperture, said cylindrical front wall being coupled to said partial enclosure to form the housing such that the substantially cylindrical aperture is operable to permit a field of view for allowing camera surveillance. In accordance with this aspect of the present invention, the cylindrical aperture or opening allows for a wide viewing angle and allows the camera to be mounted in almost any location. For example, simply by having this cylindrical opening the camera may be placed in the middle of a corridor with cameras pointing in opposite directions. In a particular embodiment of the present invention, the aperture is provided by using an opaque, flexible, but hard glass which protects the camera from damage.  
           [0010]    In another aspect of the present invention, a housing kit comprising at least one first portion, each first portion including a back wall and at least one side wall extending transversely from the back wall to form a partial enclosure operable to receive at least one surveillance camera and a second portion including a cylindrical front wall having a substantially cylindrical aperture, the second portion being operable for removable connection to any of the first portions to form the housing such that the substantially cylindrical aperture is operable to permit a field of view for the at least one surveillance camera. In accordance with this aspect of the present invention, each first portion is designed for a different mounting application. In particular, the housing in accordance with this aspect of the present invention may be designed such that one of the plurality of first portions side walls extend to the back wall at an angle such that the back wall width is less than the frontal frame width thereby allowing the housing to be mounted in a horizontal or vertical corner. In addition, by adjusting the width of the side walls the housing may be mounted more flushly against a wall.  
           [0011]    In another aspect of the present invention, a surveillance device for observing a surveillance location comprising a housing formed in a shape having a tubular aperture; and a first video camera mounted within the housing interior on a first camera gimbal, the first camera gimbal including at least two perpendicular axes of rotation to allow horizontal and vertical swivel positioning and adjustment of the first video camera, the first video camera having a viewing angle of substantially 180°. In accordance with this aspect of the present invention, the surveillance device includes a wide viewing angle and therefore is able to support a variety of applications including being mounted in the middle of a corridor, in a corner, or be mounted on a cornice. In either of the mounting positions, the camera has a wide angle of view and can provide surveillance over a wide viewing angle of approximately 180°. In addition, where the camera is mounted to a ceiling the viewing angle is increased to substantially 360°.  
           [0012]    In yet another aspect of the present invention, the housing includes flanges or frames that slope forward away from the back wall and the rear flanges slope downward towards the back walls such that the rear flange and front flange are mounted flushly to provide a substantially airtight interior. In accordance with this particular aspect of the present invention, the housing provides an airtight, almost hermetically sealed, environment which substantially enhances the reliability of the cameras mounted within the housing.  
           [0013]    Further, in accordance with yet another aspect of the present invention, the housing further comprises a first video camera mounted within the housing on a first camera gimbal, the first camera gimbal including at least two perpendicular axes of rotation to allow horizontal and vertical swivel positioning and adjustment of the first video camera so as to allow the first video camera to have a viewing angle of substantially 180°. As a further improvement to this particular aspect of the present invention, an embodiment is provided wherein the first video camera can be panned about the viewing angle.  
           [0014]    In yet another embodiment in accordance with the present invention, a second video camera may be mounted within the housing on a second camera gimbal, the second camera gimbal including at least two perpendicular axes of rotation to allow horizontal and vertical swivel positioning and adjustment of said video camera so as to allow said second video camera to have a viewing angle of substantially 180°. With two cameras in the housing, one video camera can be pointing in an opposite direction to the other video camera thereby allowing for full time surveillance in opposite directions. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0015]    [0015]FIG. 1A is a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 1B is a front view of the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 1A;  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 1C is a side view of the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 1A;  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 1D is a top view of the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 1A;  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 2A is a front view of the body of a housing in accordance with an aspect of the present invention;  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 2B is a front view of the hood of a housing detached in accordance with an aspect of the present invention;  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 2C depicts a top view of an alternate embodiment of a housing in accordance with an aspect of the present invention;  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 2D is a cross-sectional view of the body of FIG. 2A taken along the line  2 D- 2 D;  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 2E is a cross-sectional view of the hood of FIG. 2B taken along the line  2 E- 2 E;  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 3A illustrates a rear view of a hood of a housing in accordance with an embodiment illustrative of an aspect of the present invention;  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 3B illustrates a front view of a hood of a housing in accordance with an aspect of the present invention;  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 4A is a perspective view of a second embodiment of a housing in accordance with an aspect of the present invention;  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 4B is a side view of the embodiment of FIG. 4A;  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 4C is a top view of the embodiment of FIG. 4A;  
         [0029]    [0029]FIG. 5A is a perspective view of a third embodiment of a housing in accordance with an aspect of the present invention;  
         [0030]    [0030]FIG. 5B is a side view of the housing of FIG. 5A; and  
         [0031]    [0031]FIG. 5C is a top view of the housing of FIG. 5A. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0032]    Referring to FIGS. 1A, 1B,  1 C and  1 D, there are shown different views of a housing  100  for a surveillance device in accordance with one or more aspects of the present invention. As FIG. 1 shows, the housing  100  comprises a back wall  104  and four side walls  106 ,  108 ,  110 , and  112 . Opposite back wall  104  is an upper cylindrical side wall  120  having an opening  124  and a rear flange member  128 . In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, the back wall  104  and four side walls  106 ,  108 ,  110 , and  112  preferably constitute a first (rear) portion of the housing  100 . Further, in accordance with this aspect, the cylindrical side wall  120  and rear flange member  128  preferably constitute a second (front) portion of the housing  100  with the opening  124  centered in cylindrical wall  124  as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1D. The housing  100  is preferably formed by mounting or fastening the first and second portions together.  
         [0033]    There are other alternatives to forming the apparatus  100 , including a structure where the side walls  106 ,  108 ,  110 ,  112  and the upper cylindrical side wall  120  form one portion of the housing. In this latter embodiment, the back wall  104  is detachably mounted to the four side walls  106 ,  108 ,  110 ,  112  to form the enclosed housing  100 .  
         [0034]    As best seen in FIGS. 1A, 1B and  1 D, the opening  124  is preferably formed in a cylindrical shape into which an opaque glass may be mounted. As FIGS. 1A and 1D show, the opening  124  comprises a cylindrical shape and occupies most of the surface area of cylindrical side wall  120 . In this way, the opening  124  provides a side-to-side viewing angle about axis  2 - 2  of approximately 180°. In practice, the opening  124  is sealed with a sturdy and opaque glass. Further, on at least one side wall, such as side wall  106 , an opening  129  is provided through which cabling, necessary for operating the camera, may be inserted or threaded. Such cabling may include cabling for transmitting a video signal and for powering one or more cameras within the housing.  
         [0035]    [0035]FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrate the first portion or body  131  and the second portion or hood  133 , respectively. The body  131  and the hood  133  are secured or fastened together to form the housing  100 . As FIG. 2A shows, the body  131  may be comprised of a single piece or structure formed by side walls  106 ,  108 ,  110 , and  112 , bottom wall  104 , and a frontal flange  138 . The frontal flange  138  terminates at edges  142  thereby defining a frontal opening above bottom wall  104 . In addition, the frontal flange  138  serves as the mounting surface for rear flange  128 . The body  131  therefore forms an open box structure.  
         [0036]    As FIG. 2B shows, the hood  133  is comprised of rear flange member  128  and upper cylindrical side wall  120 . The upper cylindrical side wall  120  terminates at edges  152  to define the cylindrical opening  124 . As previously discussed, the cylindrical opening  124  is preferably sealed or closed with an opaque glass thereby allowing for surveillance while protecting the cameras installed within the housing  100 . The cylindrical opening  124  advantageously provides a wide angle of view about the longitudinal axis  2 - 2  of approximately 180°. As is discussed in further detail below, in most applications the housing  100  is mounted with longitudinal axis  2 - 2 , which extends in a direction along the length of the housing  100 , being perpendicular to the intended field of view. For example, if the application requires installation along a corridor to monitor the area extending in opposite directions down the corridor, then the housing  100  is preferably mounted with the longitudinal axis  2 - 2  being substantially perpendicular to the ceiling or floor.  
         [0037]    As also shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the body  131  includes apertures  147  and the hood  133  includes apertures  149 , which are used to secure body  131  to the hood  133  when forming housing  100 . Although FIGS. 2A and 2B show that each of the body  131  and the hood  133  preferably have two fastening apertures, i.e.,  147   2  and  147   4  and  149   2  and  149   4 , respectively, four fastening apertures may also be used for securing the body to the hood. Nevertheless, we have found that apertures  147   2 ,  147   4 ,  149   2  and  149   4  are adequate for securing the body  131  to the hood  133 .  
         [0038]    In accordance with one or more further aspects of the invention, as best seen in FIG. 2D, front flange  138  of the body  131  is preferably sloped at an angle upwardly from the side walls  106 ,  108 ,  110 ,  112  to edges  142 , forming an angle flange. Sloping up to approximately 45° is usually adequate. The rear flange  128 , as best seen in FIG. 2E, is preferably sloped downwardly at approximately the same angle from the upper cylindrical side wall  120 , forming a mating flange. When the body  131  and the hood  133  are secured at their respective flanges  138 ,  128  the housing is substantially airtight. Of course, the flanges  138 ,  128  of the housing may be made without an angled flange; however, such an implementation may not protect the cameras as well as the sloped flange.  
         [0039]    Those of ordinary skill in the art will note that the housing  100  may be made using other structures than the hood and body arrangement of the embodiment described hereinabove. For example, an alternate embodiment may include the four side walls  106 ,  108 ,  110 , and  112  mated with the cylindrical side wall  120 , such as by forming a single piece or structure. In such an alternate embodiment, the back wall  104  is preferably detachably mounted to the sidewalls  106 ,  108 ,  110 ,  112 ,  120 , thereby allowing access to the interior of the housing. It is noted that in this embodiment, front flange  138  would not be needed. Instead, such a flange may be placed at the end of this alternate structure where the back wall  104  is secured. FIG. 2C depicts this alternate embodiment of the invention by showing a housing  103 . In particular, a first portion  201  comprises side walls  206 ,  210  and  212 . A fourth side wall is not shown but is understood to be opposite side wall  212 . The first portion  201  additionally includes upper flange  228 , cylindrical side walls  220  and opening  224  (depicted as sealed with an opaque glass). The back wall  204  completes the housing  103  when it is secured to first portion  201 . Those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize from this disclosure that alternative configurations of the housing are possible without departing from the scope of the present invention, it being preferred, however, that such configurations include the cylindrical view aperture or port.  
         [0040]    Returning to FIG. 2E, there is shown a window radial center  290  within the surveillance housing in accordance with aspect of the present invention. Because the radial center  290  is within the housing, the viewing angle allowed of a camera is considerably wider than available in the prior art. In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the window radial center  290  may be chosen so as to coincide with the focal point of the camera within the housing (e.g., see FIG. 3B). In this way, the housing will accommodate the rotational limit of even large cameras and provide substantially 180° field of view. In addition, a smaller camera can be positioned in front of the radial center point (e.g., see FIG. 3A) so as to further increase the field of view. In this way, housings implemented in accordance with this aspect of the invention advantageously allow for a large viewing angle while at the same time allowing the flexibility for many different types of cameras to be installed in such housings.  
         [0041]    Referring to FIG. 3A, there is shown a rear view of hood  333  of a housing in accordance with an embodiment illustrative of an aspect of the present invention. As FIG. 3A shows, a camera  350  is installed on a camera gimbal  353 . The camera gimbal  353  is mounted onto cylindrical side wall  320 . This particular mounting arrangement allows the camera  350  to be rotated about longitudinal axis  2 - 2 . The cylindrical aperture  324  allows the camera, via adjustment of the gimbal, a viewing angle of substantially 180° about longitudinal axis  2 - 2 . FIG. 3B shows a front view of a housing having two cameras in accordance with an alternate embodiment of the present invention. In the embodiment of FIG. 3B, two cameras are mounted on the respective gimbals within the interior. Each camera can be positioned to the opposite direction simultaneously and therefore can be advantageously placed in the center of a corridor.  
         [0042]    Referring again to FIG. 3A, those of ordinary skill in the art will note that camera  350  may be mounted on a support that allows the camera to be rotated or panned about along the longitudinal axis  2 - 2 . Such an arrangement may be advantageous where the location is not usually crowded or where a second camera proves too costly.  
         [0043]    As previously discussed, the housing may be formed by securing a hood  133  to a body  131 . Such an arrangement advantageously allows the body of the housing to be detachably mounted. As such, different bodies can be mounted to the same hood. In particular, and by way of reference to FIG. 4, a body  433  comprising shorter side walls  406 ,  408 ,  410 , and  412  and a back wall  414  may be secured to hood  131  to form a housing  400 . In this embodiment, the height of the housing  400  is approximately 84 millimeters. In comparison, the height of the housing  100  is approximately 100 millimeters. The housing  400  advantageously allows the surveillance device to be mounted more flushly than in the case of housing  100 . Such an embodiment may be particularly useful where the camera is desired to be mounted along a cornice.  
         [0044]    Turning now to FIG. 5, there is depicted a housing  500  in accordance with another aspect of the present invention. In particular, the body  533  of housing  500  comprises side walls  503 ,  505 ,  507 , and  509  and also includes back wall  512 . The side walls  505  and  509  are angled towards the back wall  512  such that the width, W 1 , of housing  500  as measured along the back wall  509  is smaller than the width, W 2 , as measured where the rear flange  528  of the hood  531  is secured to the body  533 . In accordance with this embodiment, the housing  500  may easily be mounted in a corner so that two surveillance cameras can be positioned to monitor the two corridors intersecting at the corner. In such an application, the housing  500  is wedged into the corner with the longitudinal axis  2 - 2  of the housing  500  being perpendicular to the floor. In another application, the housing  500  may be mounted in the corner formed by the intersection of a wall and a ceiling. In such an application, the housing is mounted with longitudinal axis  2 - 2  being oriented parallel to the floor. Further, as illustrated in FIG. 5B, the height of housing  500  is approximately 108 millimeters as measured from the back wall  512  to the cylindrical upper wall  531 .  
         [0045]    As discussed hereinabove, where the housing comprises a base and hood that are secured together the base may be detachably mounted and interchanged among the bases depicted in FIGS. 1, 4, and  5 . Those of ordinary skill in the art will note that by separating the housing into a base and hood, bases may be made to match almost any application without sacrificing any of the other advantages of the housing. In particular, the wide field angle view afforded by the cylindrical aperture is still available for all such applications. In addition, the flanges of the body and hood may still be sloped to provide better securing of the hood to body.  
         [0046]    Where the housing is formed by securing a hood to a body, several fastening means are available. We have found that with the flanges of both the body and the hood sloped, two screws may be used to secure that arrangement yet while providing a good enough seal to allow for reliable and safe operation of the camera within the housing. Alternatively, four screws may also be used to secure such an arrangement. Of course, any means of fastening which allows the hood and body to be detachably mounted yet while providing adequate sealing may be used.  
         [0047]    In addition, the sealing of the housing may be improved by application of an adhesive strip on the surface of the flange  138  or the bottom surface of flange  128 . In particular and with reference to FIGS. 2D and 2E, an adhesive strip  266  may be applied to the upper surface  267  of the flange member  138  to provide an almost hermetic seal when the hood and body are secured together. Alternatively, the strip  266  may be applied to the bottom surface  269  of flange member  128 . Further, in accordance with an alternative embodiment of the present invention, where an adhesive strip is able to provide adequate sealing, the use of fasteners may be avoided.  
         [0048]    In addition to the other advantages previously discussed, housings implemented in accordance with the present invention advantageously allow installation of larger number and types of cameras then previously allowed by prior art housings. For example, the housing may house a high resolution, auto-iris, vari-focal, color camera for specific target viewing in a bright daylight environmental (e.g., supermarket parking lot entry), and at the same time, a wide-angle, monochrome camera suitable for general surveillance in lowlight conditions, e.g., after hours, winter conditions.  
         [0049]    Although the invention herein has been described with reference to particular embodiments, it is to be understood that these embodiments are merely illustrative of the principles and applications of the present invention. It is therefore to be understood that numerous modifications may be made to the illustrative embodiments and that other arrangements may be devised without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.