Method and Apparatus for Monitoring Zones

Abstract

The present invention comprises an apparatus and method for monitoring a zone, which is a contiguous or non-contiguous, two-dimensional (2D) area or three-dimensional (3D) volume. Among its several advantages, the apparatus includes a plurality of sensors that monitor portions of the zone and report intrusion status to a control unit that provides monitoring boundary information to each of the sensors based on user input and further “maps” or otherwise associates each sensor to control unit outputs in accordance with user-defined behaviors. Still further, as a meaningful aid for configuring monitoring boundaries used by the sensors for objection intrusion detection, in one or more embodiments of the apparatus and method, at least a subset of sensors use a common coordinate frame of reference, based on a common origin located within overlapping sensor fields of view.

1 . A monitoring apparatus configured to detect objects within an area or volume referred to as a monitoring zone and to detect intrusions of objects according to configured boundaries defined with respect to the monitoring zone, the monitoring apparatus comprising:
 a plurality of sensors, each configured to monitor for intrusions according to a configured boundary and each sensor having a communication interface to receive configuration data defining the configured boundary to be monitored by the sensor and send intrusion detection information responsive to detecting object intrusions according to the configured boundary; and   a control unit comprising:
 a configuration interface to receive control unit configuration data, the control unit configuration data defining control unit behavior with respect to each sensor, including defining a control response by the control unit with respect to the intrusion detection information received from each sensor; 
 a communication interface communicatively coupling the control unit to the plurality of sensors and configured to send sensor configuration data to corresponding ones among the plurality of sensors, to thereby define the configured boundary at each sensor, and to receive the intrusion detection information from each sensor; 
 a number of outputs configured to provide signals to external devices or systems; and 
 one or more processing circuits configured to control the outputs responsive to the intrusion detection information from each sensor, in accordance with the control response defined for the sensor. 
   
     
     
         2 . The monitoring apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the control unit is further configured to receive the sensor configuration data via the configuration interface, or to generate the sensor configuration data for each sensor, responsive to receiving user inputs via the configuration interface. 
     
     
         3 . The monitoring apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the sensors comprise a plurality of imaging sensors, each imaging sensor configured to process image data from a field of view covering at least a portion of the monitoring zone, to thereby detect objects within the field of view and detect intrusions of such objects with respect to the configured boundary provided to the imaging sensor by the control unit. 
     
     
         4 . The monitoring apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the sensors comprise a plurality of laser scanners, each laser scanner configured to process return reflections from a scanning plane or volume covering at least a portion of the monitoring zone, to thereby detect objects within the camera field of view and detect intrusions of such objects with respect to the configured boundary provided to the laser scanner by the control unit. 
     
     
         5 . The monitoring apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the sensors comprise a heterogeneous mix of sensor types, including one or more image-based sensors, each configured to monitor at least a portion of the monitoring zone based on processing imaging data corresponding to at least the portion of the monitoring zone, and one or more laser scanners, each configured to monitor at least a portion of the monitoring zone based on processing laser reflections returned from the at least the portion of the monitoring zone, wherein the laser reflections correspond to laser energy emitted from the laser scanner. 
     
     
         6 . The monitoring apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the control unit is configured to provide a user configuration interface and to set or adjust the configured boundaries of the sensors based at least in part on user inputs received via the user configuration interface. 
     
     
         7 . The monitoring apparatus of  claim 6 , wherein the control unit is configured to:
 receive measurement data corresponding to field of view data from a first one of the sensors;   receive or generate data representing a displayed boundary representing the configured boundary of a second one of the sensors as seen from the perspective of the first sensor;   provide the field of view data and the data representing the displayed boundary via the user configuration interface;   adjust the data representing the displayed boundary responsive to user inputs; and   adjust the configured boundary of the second sensor in accordance with the adjustments made to the displayed boundary.   
     
     
         8 . The monitoring apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the outputs include one or more safety-critical outputs, and wherein the one or more processing circuits control the safety critical outputs responsive to the intrusion detection information from a particular sensor, in accordance with the control response defined for that particular sensor. 
     
     
         9 . The monitoring apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the control unit is configured to identify the sensor from which intrusion detection information is received, based on identifiers uniquely identifying each sensor among the plurality of sensors, and is further configured to look up or otherwise select the control response based on the identifier associated with the intrusion detection information received at any given time by the control unit. 
     
     
         10 . A method of monitoring an area or volume referred to as a monitoring zone and detecting intrusions of objects according to configured boundaries defined with respect to the monitoring zone, the method comprising:
 sending sensor configuration data from a control unit to respective sensors among a plurality of sensors that are communicatively linked to the control unit, to configure a monitoring boundary used by each respective sensor for detecting object intrusions into least a portion of the monitoring zone;   receiving control unit configuration data at the control unit, and configuring a control response of the control unit with respect to each sensor according to the control unit configuration data; and   receiving intrusion detection information from given ones of the sensors, and controlling one or more outputs of the control unit according to the control response defined for the sensors from which the intrusion detection information is received.   
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the control unit includes a configuration interface, and further comprising receiving the sensor configuration data, the control unit configuration data, or both, through the configuration interface 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein at least a subset of the plurality of sensors is referenced to a common coordinate frame of reference, and further comprising providing field of view data for a first one of the sensors via the configuration interface, including data representing a displayed boundary corresponding to the configured boundary of a second one of the sensors as seen from the perspective of the first sensor, updating the data representing the displayed boundary responsive to user inputs, and correspondingly changing the configured boundary of the second sensor. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the outputs include one or more safety-critical outputs, and further comprising controlling the safety critical outputs responsive to the intrusion detection information from a particular sensor, in accordance with the control response defined for that particular sensor. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 10 , further comprising identifying from which sensor intrusion detection information is received at the control unit, based on identifiers uniquely identifying each sensor among the plurality of sensors, and looking up or otherwise selecting the control response at the control unit according to the identifier associated with the intrusion detection information received at any given time by the control unit.