Scalable image-based multi-camera visual surveillance system

We describe the design of a scalable and wide coverage visual surveillance system. Scalability (the ability to add and remove cameras easily during system operation with minimal overhead and system degradation) is achieved by utilizing only image-based information for camera control. We show that when a pan-tilt-zoom camera pans and tilts, a given image point moves in a circular and a linear trajectory, respectively. We create a scene model using a plan view of the scene. The scene model makes it easy for us to handle occlusion prediction and schedule video acquisition tasks subject to visibility constraints. We describe a maximum weight matching algorithm to assign cameras to tasks that meet the visibility constraints. The system is illustrated both through simulations and real video from a 6-camera configuration.