Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.

Teppei Fukuda

Hiroyuki Matsumoto

Hisashi Tsuji

Toshimichi Tokuda

Kazunori Hayashi

Shinichi Shigenaga

Hirotaka Sawa

Akitoshi Izumi

Shintaro Yoshikuni

Tadashi Maki

Shojiro Matsuo

Kosuke Shinozaki

Takashi Hirabara

Keisuke Fujimoto

Hirokazu Tasaka

Ryoichi Yuge

Susumu Ono

A directionality control system includes: a camera; a microphone provided as a separate body from the camera; a display that displays video data captured by the camera; and a processor that computes a sound collection direction, which is directed from the microphone toward a sound position corresponding to a designated position in the video data. The processor computes the sound collection direction by using parameters including: a first height of the camera from a reference surface, a second height of the microphone from the reference surface, a third height of a computation reference point from the reference surface, the computation reference point being positioned in the sound collection direction at a position different from the sound position, a direction which is directed from the camera toward the sound position, and a fourth height of the sound position from the reference surface.

Directionality control system, calibration method, horizontal deviation angle computation method, and directionality control method

A camera and a microphone array configuring a monitoring system are capable of receiving electric power from a PoE apparatus through a LAN cable. In a case where a first switching operation is performed on a microphone array side, an output terminal of an input switch is connected to an input terminal of a PoE electric power reception circuit side. An input terminal of an output switch is connected to an output terminal of a PoE electric power transmission circuit side. On a camera side, an output terminal of the input switch is connected to an input terminal of a PoE electric power receptor side. The microphone array receives electric power that is supplied from the PoE apparatus for operation and transmits the electric power towards the camera. The camera receives the supplied electric power from the PoE apparatus through the microphone array and the LAN cable for operation.

Microphone array, monitoring system, and sound pickup setting method

Sound collection directionality is formed toward a location corresponding to a position designated in a video of a predetermined region which is imaged by a camera apparatus with a microphone array apparatus as a reference, and audio data is collected with high accuracy. In a directionality control system (), a signal processing unit () derives a sound collection direction (&#x3b8;,&#x3b8;) which is directed from an installation position of a microphone array apparatus () toward a sound position corresponding to a position designated in video data on a screen of the display device () in response to a user's designation of any position in the video data displayed on the screen. The signal processing unit () forms sound collection directionality of audio data in the derived sound collection direction (&#x3b8;,&#x3b8;).

When a microphone array apparatus sound-picks up voice in a prescribed sound volume or higher, which is output from a sound source, and sends voice data on the voice to voice processing apparatus, a sound source direction detection unit causes sound source marks, each of which indicates a directivity direction, to be displayed on a display, and urges a user to make a selection among the sound source marks and to input camera information. A voice processing apparatus transmits the camera information that is input, and the directivity direction, to the microphone array apparatus. The microphone array apparatus stores the camera information and the directivity direction, as a preset information table, in a storage unit. Accordingly, where a positional relationship between the camera and the microphone array is unclear, directionality is formed in a determined image capture position, and voice in the predetermined image capture position is output clearly.

A recorder receives designation of a video which is desired to be reproduced from a user. If designation of one or more designated locations where sound is emphasized on a screen of a display which displays the video is received by the recorder from the user via an operation unit during reproduction or temporary stopping of the video, a signal processing unit performs an emphasis process on audio data, that is, the signal processing unit emphasizes audio data in directions directed toward positions corresponding to the designated locations from a microphone array by using audio data recorded in the recorder. A reproducing device reproduces the emphasis-processed audio data and video data in synchronization with each other.

Sound processing system and processing method that emphasize sound from position designated in displayed video image

Growing community of inventors

Fukuoka, Japan

Teppei Fukuda