Patent Publication Number: US-2016248972-A1

Title: Panoramic Game Camera

Description:
FIELD OF INVENTION 
     The present invention relates generally to the field of hunting and more specifically to game cameras used by hunters to monitor the presence and activity of game animals in the wild. In even greater particularity, the present invention relates to a game camera for capturing images or video of game animals in the wild wherein the camera is activated by movement of the animal within a panoramic view of the camera, or triggered at a specific time, or may include a time lapse or delay. In still further particularity, the present invention is related to a game camera in which multiple lenses are directed to contiguous portions of a panoramic view and images are captured through each lens when the camera system is actuated by the movement of an animal within the panoramic view. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Game cameras, also referred to as motion detector cameras, trail cameras, or surveillance cameras, are widely used by hunters to monitor areas of interest such as near feeders or food plots or known game trails to determine what animals are visiting these areas. Such cameras have become increasingly sophisticated, yet the hunter is constantly wondering what might have been just outside the field of view of the camera when an image was captured. Accordingly attempts have been made to expand the field of view of the camera. Some of these attempts have included multiple lenses and multiple motion detectors. 
     Others have included a single camera lens that moves about a vertical axis to take pictures over a wide panoramic arc. Some cameras even purport to provide 360 degree images. The known cameras have not proven satisfactory due to a variety of reasons including the movement of the single camera to take images across the viewing area, and the complexity of matching images from three lenses. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A general object of the invention is to allow the user to monitor activity during times when he is not present on site. This monitoring is achieved by utilizing a game or trail camera in an area such that when a certain time has elapsed or a subject moves within the detection area of the camera, it will capture a still image or photo of the subject for later review. 
     A more specific object of the invention is to allow the end user to monitor a larger area in a manner that not only allows for a larger area of detection and image capture, but also by responding more accurately as to where the original movement is detected. 
     Yet another object of the invention is to reduce or eliminate moving parts that may wear out over time in a wide angle camera system. 
     Still another object of the invention is to provide for silent operation to avoid spooking game animals. 
     A further object of the invention is a confirmed field of view achieved by consistent positioning of each sensor and consistent alignment of individual images resulting in a final panoramic image with no unintended overlap or gap between sections. 
     Another object of the invention is to obtain more rapid sequencing and capture of images. 
     An advantage over certain prior art devices is increased battery life due to not needing to drive and control a motor to move an image sensor to the desired position. 
     Still another advantage over prior Moultrie devices is a lack of moving parts to interfere with audio recording, thus, the device can accommodate a microphone and audio capture component when capturing video. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Referring to the drawings which are appended hereto and which form a portion of this disclosure, it may be seen that: 
         FIG. 1  is diagrammatic view of the field of view of the instant camera; 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram of the major active components; 
         FIG. 3  is a front elevation view of the camera housing showing the camera apertures and PIR detectors; 
         FIG. 4  is a side elevation view of the camera housing; 
         FIG. 5  is a bottom view of the camera housing; 
         FIGS. 6 a  to 6 c    are depictions of the scene within the field of view each of the camera apertures when in a single view mode; 
         FIGS. 7 a  to 7 c    are depictions of the scene within the field of view each of the camera apertures when in a panoramic view mode; and, 
         FIG. 8  is a depiction of the combined panoramic image stored by the camera unit. 
         FIG. 9  is a flow chart of the color correction methodology of various embodiments. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , it may be seen that the present camera system is intended to capture a combined image that covers a wide or “panoramic” field of view. Within the panoramic field of view are three zones such that the camera operates as a single camera with a 180° or greater detection zone and field of view by capturing separate images sequentially in each zone and combining them through image post-processing. The term images as used herein should be construed to include the capture of video imagery. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 3 to 5 , in one embodiment the camera unit  10  utilizes three camera apertures  12  facing radially outward from a housing  14 . The housing  14  fixes the camera apertures  12  in place with the apertures  12  located about a common center and on a common plane. As illustrated in  FIG. 1 , each of the apertures  12  has a field of view of from 40 to 75 degrees and preferably about 60 degrees with the field of view of each of the plurality of camera apertures  12  bounded by the field of view of each adjacent aperture  12 . The housing  14  maintains each aperture cooperatively positioned relative to an associated image capture sensor  16  mounted therein such that the field of view of the associated aperture  12  is focused on the image capture sensor  16  by appropriate lenses. Each image capture sensor  16  is coupled to a microprocessor unit  18  receiving electronic image input from each of the associated image capture sensors  16 . The microprocessor unit  18  is programmed to selectively combine each electronic image input to yield a panoramic image spanning the combined field of view of all of the plurality of apertures  12 . In one embodiment the unit uses a plurality of motion detector sensors  20 , each motion detector sensor  20  associated with one of the plurality of camera apertures  12  and having a field of view coextensive with its associated camera aperture  12 . Each of the motion detector sensors  20  is operatively connected to the microprocessor unit  18  to provide an input thereto indicative of a moving body in a field of view coextensive with an associated one of said plurality of camera apertures  12 . Microprocessor unit  18  is programmed to activate at least the image capture sensor  16  having the moving body within its focused field of view when the microprocessor unit  18  receives the input from the motion detector sensor  20 . An electronic memory  22 , which may include a buffer memory  24 , ram memory  26  and removable storage  28  such as an SD card, is connected to the microprocessor unit  18  for storing data including said electronic image input and said panoramic image. 
     Also as seen in  FIGS. 2 to 5 , the unit includes an LED array  30  comprised of a plurality of LED emitters positioned to illuminate the field of view associated with the camera apertures. The microprocessor unit  18  is programed to selectively activate a plurality of LEDs in the LED array  30  which are positioned to illuminate the field of view of a camera aperture  12  in which a moving body has been detected by one of the plurality of motion detector sensor  20   s . Of course, if the images are captured during daylight hours the LED array  30  may not be necessary, therefore a light sensor  32  for detecting the ambient light and in communication the microprocessor unit  18  such that the microprocessor unit  18  selectively activates the LED array  30  when said detected ambient light is below a predetermined threshold. 
     For SINGLE MODE capture, the camera unit  10  operates similar to three independent cameras within a single housing  14 , detecting and capturing still photos or videos within the zone respective to where the motion is detected and utilizing that zone&#39;s individual image sensor  16  and LED array  30  (when required) to create a single 40° to 70° horizontal field of view image. Differing from similar products, such as Moultrie&#39;s current Panoramic  150  camera, this requires no movement within the device to get the image sensor  16  and LED array  30  into the position required to capture the image in the zone wherein the movement was detected, resulting in completely silent operation and more rapid capture, as well as consistent positioning and alignment and longer lifespan due to lack of moving parts which may wear out. Examples of the output of the device in this mode would be single still images or videos capturing game in each independent zone as illustrated in  FIGS. 6 a , 6 b    and  6   c.    
     For PANORAMIC MODE capture, the camera operates as a single camera with a 180° detection zone and field of view by capturing separate images sequentially in each zone and combining them through image post-processing. Such image processing can be accomplished with varying degrees of complexity. In one embodiment, a direct combination of the images in each field of view is accomplished such that the image from zone A is place adjacent the image from zone B and the image from zone B is placed against the image of zone c to create a new panoramic output image with resolution equal to 1 times the height of each image zone and 3 times the width of each image zone. In this embodiment the edge alignment of the adjacent zones is disregarded. In a second embodiment the alignment of each edge of the adjacent zones undergoes pattern alignment such that microprocessor unit  18  will review edges of each adjacent zone image A &amp; B and B &amp; C, and extract similar edge pattern via review of RGB values and light patterns. The microprocessor unit will then align patterns with minimal overlap (1-2 pixel columns) to correct for any manufacturing tolerance in image sensor  16  plane elevations. In the third embodiment microprocessor unit  18  will apply distortion compensation to zones A and C to optically align their content with that of zone B and then apply the second apply distortion compensation to zones A and C to optically align their content with that of zone B and then apply pattern alignment for final combination into the panoramic image stored by the memory. 
     Examples of the output of the device in this mode would be a single still image capturing game in an initial starting zone and additional captures of the remaining two zones as illustrated in  FIGS. 7 a , 7 b , and 2 c   . These images are then combined into a single image as illustrated in  FIG. 8 . 
     Each image sensor  16  manufactured has a specified tolerance that results in the sensor  16  having a variance in the red, green and blue color component of its output. In single image sensor  16  devices, this is not an issue as the microprocessor unit includes a digital signal processor (DSP) which compensates for this variance to produce a true corrected value in the output. In devices with multiple image sensors  16 , without color compensation or presorting the devices during manufacturing, the resultant combined or panoramic image will have non-color-matched output on the final image as there is an inherent differential between the outputs from each device. This new device solves this problem with a specially designed algorithm and software which corrects for the deviation between each image sensor  16  to create a compensation coefficient for each sensor  16  such that the final combined image shows no or minimal noticeable deviation in color from each individual segment of the image. After final assembly of the camera unit  10 , a test image is captured against a color chart with known values. The RGB color components of the resultant image are measured to generate a sensor characteristic coefficient including, but not limited to color offset and gain, black level, and white balance and overall response for each individual image capture sensor  16  within the plurality of such sensors. These characteristic values are then saved within the camera unit&#39;s internal memory. When in subsequent use, upon completion of capture and during the image post processing stage, the camera modifies each Red, Green and Blue color component for each pixel of each image capture sensor  16  against their respective sensor characteristics in tandem with compiled variables based on the combination of each color channel and each sensor  16  through a specific formula to create an ideal and level color image in the final output as shown in  FIG. 9 . 
     An additional advantage over existing products is that the device has the ability to initiate the capture sequence in whichever zone originally detects motion instead of having to utilize a dedicated starting location or reposition an aperture mechanically. This allows for quicker capture of the desired subject as soon as it is detected, preventing the potential for the subject to exit the field of view before sequencing reaches the subject&#39;s respective zone. In this embodiment, the first image captured will always be the zone in which movement is detected, allowing the remaining sequencing to be follow-up captures secondary to the primary function of capturing the activity of the subject which triggered the capture originally. 
     Alternatively, the system can record video in which the video capture can switch sensors reactively based on game movement, such that if the game were to move from the initial zone A to zone B, the motion detector sensor of zone B would trigger the microprocessor unit  18  to terminate capture in zone A and begin capture in zone B to follow the movement of the subject. In lieu of a single image sensor  16  that rotates to a desired position, the device utilizes multiple image sensors  16  in fixed positions to capture a wider field of view. 
     In another embodiment, the unit contains a single motion detection unit which serves to signal the microprocessor unit  18  to activate the image sensor  16   s  in sequence. In this embodiment, the sequence can be alternated such that the image sensor  16  in any zone may be selected to actuate first. This arrangement provides a useful and relatively inexpensive unit for use in locations where the prevailing winds blow across the field of view or in mountainous areas where game animals move against the rising and settling air during the cycle of a day. Thus, if the wind direction is from right to left across the field of view, the user would choose to activate the left image sensor  16  first since game animals would likely be moving into the wind. 
     While in the foregoing specification this invention has been described in relation to certain embodiments thereof, and many details have been put forth for the purpose of illustration, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the invention is susceptible to additional embodiments and that certain of the details described herein can be varied considerably without departing from the basic principles of the invention.