Patent Application
20140301710
Not applicable.
The invention relates to a method for operating a lighting system integrating a video camera.
For instance, but by no means exclusively, known lighting systems are used for lighting concert, theater and television stages. Said lighting systems comprise lighting control consoles for controlling the lighting systems. Within the lighting control console, a digital processor and a digital memory are provided in order to enable digital signal processing. As a matter of course, multiple digital processors and multiple digital memories can be provided as well. By means of the lighting control console, control data are generated, managed and stored in order to control the various light sources of the lighting system. The lighting control consoles comprised by known lighting systems can control up to several thousand different light sources and can create a predetermined lighting scenario under program control.
Furthermore, the lighting system comprises at least one video camera with which the stage can be recorded and a digital video signal can be generated. The video camera makes it possible to observe the proceedings on the stage in an electronic manner. With known lighting systems, the video signals of the video camera are redistributed via a separate video signal data network and are displayed at displays which are suitable for processing the digital video signals. This type of electronic representation of the proceedings on the stage has great disadvantages. This is because in the control center of the lighting system, in which the lighting control console is established, besides the lighting control console, a separate video system with displays for displaying the video signals of the video cameras has to be installed. This coexistence of the lighting control system having the lighting control console and the light sources connected thereto and the video system having the video camera and the video display suitable for displaying the video signals requires a high installation effort. Furthermore, the image information contained in the video signals cannot be taken into account by the lighting control console.
Starting from this state of the art, it is therefore the object of the present invention to provide a new method for operating a lighting system cooperating with a video camera, which eliminates the disadvantages of the known state of the art. This object is attained by a method according to the teachings described herein.
With the method according to one embodiment of the invention, a part of the stage is illuminated with light from at least one light source of the lighting system and a portion of the stage is recorded with the video camera. The video images recorded by the video camera are converted into digital video signals.
Now, instead of transmitting the digital video signals to a video display suitable for displaying the digital video signals, it is envisaged according to the invention to initially transmit the video signals to a conversion device. Within the conversion device, the digital video signals of the video camera are converted into digital image data signals which can be processed by the digital processor of the lighting control console. Subsequently, the digital image data signals obtained in this way are transmitted to the lighting control console and are stored at least temporarily in the digital memory there.
The digital image data signals stored at least temporarily in the digital memory of the lighting control console are subsequently processed after starting a display task in the digital processor. Then, the result of this image data processing in the digital processor is image data signals which are suitable for being displayed on the display of the lighting control console. The image data signals processed in this way are subsequently displayed on the display of the lighting control console, such that the user can view the portion of the stage which has been recorded by the video camera on the display of the lighting control console.
By applying the method according to the invention, the video camera is integrated into the apparatus of the lighting system and makes it possible to display the images recorded by the video camera on the display of the lighting control console. The video display otherwise required for directly displaying the video signals from the video camera can be omitted in this way. Furthermore, integrating the video data into the data processing of the lighting control console provides a wide variety of options for controlling the lighting system.
In order to increase flexibility when operating the lighting control console, it is particularly advantageous if a stage representation window is defined when processing the image data signals in the digital processor of the lighting control console. In said stage representation window, the image data of the video camera are then displayed. Subsequently, the stage representation window can be displayed in a typical manner in a portion of the screen of the display and can be made smaller and/or moved there. In this way, the user thus has the option to adapt the display of the portion of the stage to his respective requirements by means of a corresponding manipulation of the stage representation window.
According to a first method variant, it is envisaged that the user can change the position of the stage representation window on the display by entering a corresponding user command. If, for instance, the stage representation window is displayed on a touch screen, the user can move the stage representation window on the surface of the touch screen by touching the touch screen in the area of the stage representation window and by subsequently moving his finger.
Alternatively or additionally to changing the position, according to another method variant, it can also be envisaged to change the size and/or scale of the stage representation window on the display by entering user commands. If the display is, for instance, a touch screen, the user can narrow or spread out the stage representation window on the screen by means of multitouch handling.
Integrating the image information from the video camera into the data processing of the lighting control console according to the invention makes further application variants possible. In particular, it is advantageous if an image analysis task is carried out in the digital processor of the lighting control console, in order to evaluate the image data signals with respect to the image content. Depending on the evaluation result, other options can then be controlled by the lighting control console.
According to a first option for using the results from the image analysis task, it is envisaged that at least one light source is selected by the lighting control console and that, by transmitting an actuating command, emission of a light signal is caused. Said light signal emitted by the light source is recorded with the video camera and the image data signals are analyzed after conversion in the image analysis task. By means of said analysis of the image data signals, it is possible to identify the positions of the selected light source in the image portion to be displayed. As a result, it becomes possible due to said option of the image analysis task to unambiguously identify a particular light source and its position in the image portion to be displayed.
According to a first variant of said first option of the image analysis task, it is envisaged to show the designation of the selected light source, which has been identified by the image analysis task, at the position of the selected light source in the displayed image portion. As a result, the user does not only see the image of the stage with the light source, but the designation of the light source, which is stored in the memory of the lighting control console, is also displayed. In this way, the user can immediately and unambiguously identify the light sources displayed in the image portion, whereby selecting individual light sources is substantially simplified, in particular if the display is a touch screen.
Furthermore, after identifying the position of the selected light source in the image portion to be displayed, an area of the touch screen can be defined around said position, which is unambiguously assigned to said light source during control by the user. If the user touches the touch screen area which is defined at the touch screen and is unambiguously assigned to the identified light sources, the input command subsequently entered by the user is automatically assigned to the selected light source. In this way, it is made possible to work intuitively at the lighting control console, since the user does not have to remember designations of the individual light sources anymore, but instead is able to select the light sources displayed at the touch screen of the lighting control console by simply touching the area of the light sources and is able to assign corresponding input commands.
According to a second option for applying the image analysis task, it is envisaged that the image contents are evaluated by the image analysis task and that, depending on the analysis result, at least one light source is actuated as a function of the image content. In other words, this means that actuating the light sources can automatically be triggered by means of the image analysis. If, for instance, an actor enters the stage or if there is a color change on the stage or if the brightness on the stage has changed, these events can be identified by the image analysis task and, depending on the result of the image analysis task, an actuating command can be generated. For instance, it is conceivable that a specific spotlight is automatically turned on by the lighting control console by means of the image analysis task when an actor enters the stage.
According to a variant of the second option for using the image analysis task, it is envisaged that the image camera is formed in the manner of an infrared camera. In the image analysis task, brightness changes in the infrared range can then be identified and actuating commands can be generated depending thereon. Due to this variant, it is possible to place infrared light sources on the stage and to trigger specific control commands of the lighting control console by turning them on.
Which type of video signals is converted into image data signals in the conversion device can basically be freely chosen. According to a preferred variant, it is envisaged that the video signals are emitted in the USB data format or in the SDI data format or in the VGA data format.
If the lighting control console itself is connected to a data network for the purpose of data transmission, in order to control the different light sources via said data network, it is furthermore particularly advantageous if the conversion device forms a network node of the data network for converting the video signal from the video camera into digital image data signals. In this way, the digital image data signals can be transmitted from the network node to the digital processor of the lighting control console via the data network after having been converted within the conversion device.
The method according to the invention is schematically illustrated by the drawings and is explained by way of example in the following.
In the drawings:
In a schematized view,
The stage set on the stage 01 can be recorded by means of two video cameras 12 and 13. The angle of view of the two video cameras 12 and 13 is indicated in
Furthermore, a video conversion device 26, which also forms a network node, is connected to the data network 24. The two video cameras 12 and 13 are connected to said video conversion device 26. The video signals of the video cameras 12 and 13 are transmitted to the video conversion device 26 and there are converted into digital image data signals, which can be processed by the digital processor of the lighting control console. Subsequently, the digital image data signals are transmitted to the digital processor in the lighting control console 14 via the data network 24.
It is furthermore envisaged for the display task displayed in the stage representation window 18, that an image analysis task is carried out. In this image analysis, the light sources 07 to 10 are turned on one after the other for a short time, respectively, and the image data recorded in the process by the video camera 13 are analyzed in the digital processor of the lighting control console. Due to this image analysis, it is possible to identify the position of the individual light sources when shown in the stage representation window 18. In the illustrated example, the light source 07, for instance, has the designation “1”, whereas the light sources 08, 09 and 10 are named “2”, “3” and “4”. As a matter of course, other types of designations, for instance spotlight 1, spotlight 2, spotlight 3 or spotlight 4, are also conceivable here. After identifying the position of the light sources in the displayed image portion, the corresponding designations can be shown in the representation window 18 by means of the lighting control console, being assigned to the individual light sources 07 to 10 automatically and being correctly positioned.
Furthermore, by identifying the position of the light sources 07 to 10 within the stage representation window 18, it becomes possible that touch-sensitive portions 20, 21, 22 and 23 are defined on the touch-sensitive surface of the display 16 which is formed as a touch screen. If the user touches the touch-sensitive surface of the display 16 in the area of the touch-sensitive portions 20, 21, 22 or 23, the input command which is subsequently entered is automatically assigned to one of the light sources 07 to 10 in the control of the lighting control console 14. Thus, the user has the possibility to control the light sources in an intuitive manner. In order to select an individual light source 07, 08, 09 or 10, he only has to touch the display in one of the portions 20 to 23. Selecting is facilitated for the user in an intuitive manner in that the light sources 07 to 10 are shown anyway in said portions 20 to 23.
Controlling the light sources 07 to 10 can additionally be improved in that the images displayed in the stage representation window 18 are analyzed by means of an image analysis. Due to the image analysis, it can for instance be detected that both actors 05 and 06 are leaving the stage. When both actors 05 and 06 have left the stage 01, it can automatically be triggered by the lighting control console 14 that all light sources 07 to 10 are turned off, such that lighting of the stage 01 is automatically turned down after both actors 05 and 06 have left the stage 01.
