GB2611029A - Surveillance apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

A surveillance apparatus 106 comprises an elongate (e.g., cylindrical pole) mounting 200 having a proximal end to be anchored and a distal end configured to carry a sensor module 208 (e.g., video camera or ranging device), the elongate mounting 200 comprising an intermediate portion 204 extending between its proximal end and the distal end. A photo-voltaic (solar) module 206 (e.g., comprising plural photo-voltaic cells) is configured to wrap around the intermediate portion 204 of the elongate mounting 200. The elongate mounting may house an electrical charging unit, operably coupled to the photovoltaic module. The video camera may be rotatable about a longitudinal axis of the elongate mounting. The ranging device may comprise plural fixed beam projectors angularly spaced about the longitudinal axis of the mounting. A power supply such as a battery or fuelled electric generator may be disposed in a recessed housing (e.g., extended below ground level) in the apparatus. A communications antenna may be provided.

Description

SURVEILLANCE APPARATUS

[0001] The present invention relates to a surveillance apparatus of the type that, for example, employs a sensor module remote from the ground.

[0002] In known surveillance systems, a number of fixed surveillance units are deployed along, for example, a perimeter of an area to be monitored. Typically, each fixed surveillance unit comprises one or more sensors mounted atop a streamlined pole in order to provide a vantage point for the surveillance unit unhindered by obstructions to the view of the surveillance unit, for example natural obstructions caused by vegetation or uneven terrain, or man-made obstructions, such as buildings.

[0003] In order to gather information generated by the surveillance units, the surveillance units are usually connected to a centralised command and control system, which gathers and manages the information produced by each of the surveillance units, via an underground network of communications cables. Similarly, in order to power the surveillance units, the underground network of communications cables is also accompanied by a power supply network and each surveillance unit is connected to the power supply network.

[0004] Whilst some surveillance systems are physically connected to and dependent upon underground networks of communications and power cables, for some applications such infrastructure is not available and so it is desirable for such surveillance units to be able to operate autonomously without being reliant upon the infrastructure mentioned above. For autonomous operation, as with non-autonomous surveillance systems, the surveillance units comprise one or more sensors mounted atop a streamlined pole, but also require a means of generating power local to each surveillance unit and a means of exchanging data with the command and control system without the need of a fixed wired communications network. The need to fulfil such requirements for autonomous operation increases the local on-site hardware overhead for deployment of each surveillance unit, which also physically increases the footprint and/or outline of the surveillance unit making it more visually prominent and liable to detection by potential saboteurs and individuals wishing to evade surveillance.

[0005] Additionally, for local power generation, solar panels are typically employed and disposed at the base of the pole of the surveillance unit at near-ground level.

The solar panels are planar in form and have highly reflective surfaces, which makes the solar panels visible over long distances and thus render the surveillance units conspicuous when a purpose of the surveillance unit is to be as covert as possible. Batteries and a charging unit also need to be provided at the base of the surveillance unit in order to store the electrical energy generated by the solar panels in the battery. Furthermore, the use of solar energy to power the surveillance units also requires a backup source of power, for example a hydrocarbon fuelled electrical generator, in order to ensure continuous operation of the surveillance units. However, such generators are typically relatively noisy and so do not contribute to keeping the surveillance units inconspicuous; they also require the storage of fuel nearby. The additional hardware required to power the surveillance units is also directly exposed to environmental conditions, for example strong winds, hailstorms, sandstorms, ice and high temperatures. The exposure of the additional hardware also increases the vulnerability of the surveillance units in other ways, for example sabotage, which can be by way of local attack, for example human attack on site, or remotely by way of a projectile weapon or a drone attack. This thus reduces the robustness of the surveillance systems.

[0006] To enable communications between the surveillance units and the command and control system, it is known to equip each surveillance unit with a dish or Yagui-type antenna atop the pole. However, use of such antennae also increases the conspicuousness of the surveillance units and vulnerability of the surveillance units to attack.

[0007] According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a surveillance apparatus comprising: an elongate mounting having a proximal end configured to be anchored and a distal end configured to carry a sensor module, the elongate mounting comprising an intermediate portion extending between the proximal end and the distal end of the elongate mounting; and a photo-voltaic module configured to wrap around the intermediate portion of the elongate mounting.

[0008] The elongate mounting may be configured to house an electrical charging unit; the electrical charging unit may be operably coupled to the photo-voltaic module.

[0009] The photo-voltaic module may comprise a plurality of photo-voltaic cells disposed about the periphery of the elongate mounting.

[0010] The sensor module may comprise a video camera.

[0011] The elongate mounting may comprise a longitudinal axis and the video camera may be rotatable about the longitudinal axis of the elongate mounting.

[0012] The video camera may be rotatable about a 360 degree field of view with respect to the longitudinal axis. The video camera may be configured to tilt over an elevation angle of about ±45 degrees with respect to a central horizontal level.

[0013] The sensor module may comprise a ranging device.

[0014] The ranging apparatus device may be a radar device. The ranging device may be disposed beneath the video camera.

[0015] The elongate mounting may comprise a longitudinal axis, and the ranging device may comprise a plurality of fixed beam projectors angularly spaced about the longitudinal axis of the elongate mounting.

[0016] The elongate mounting may be cylindrical is shape. The elongate mounting 30 may be a pole.

[0017] The apparatus may further comprise: a recessed housing; and a power supply disposed within the recessed housing. The recessed housing msy extends below ground level.

[0018] The power supply may comprise a battery.

[0019] The battery may be operably coupled to the electrical charging unit.

[0020] The power supply may be an electric generator operably coupled to a source of fuel. The power supply may be a fuel cell, for example a methanol fuel cell.

[0021] The distal end of the elongate mounting may be free.

[0022] The proximal end of the elongate mounting may be anchored in the ground at floor level.

[0023] The sensor module may further comprise: a communications antenna and a communication module operably coupled to the communications antenna.

[0024] The communications antenna may be a strip antenna.

[0025] According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a surveillance system comprising a plurality of surveillance apparatus disposed in spaced relation to one another, wherein each of the plurality of surveillance apparatus is an apparatus as set forth above in relation to the first aspect of the invention.

[0026] It is thus possible to provide a surveillance apparatus that requires minimal civil work in order to install the surveillance apparatus and thus benefits from relatively rapid deployment without the need for the provision of data communications of power infrastructure to support the apparatus. The apparatus further provides resistance to physical tampering and sabotage, as well as resilience in the presence of harsh environmental conditions. The apparatus, when deployed, is also inconspicuous.

[0027] At least one embodiment of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a surveillance system; Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a surveillance apparatus of Figure 1 constituting an embodiment of the invention; and Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of a sensor region of the surveillance apparatus of Figure 2.

[0028] Throughout the following description identical reference numerals will be used to identify like parts.

[0029] Referring to Figure 1, a surveillance system 100 is provided to monitor a region 102 in front of a perimeter 104 of a property. In other examples, the surveillance system 100 can be employed to monitor any other suitable environment, for example a border between lands or an asset, such as a wall. The surveillance system 100 comprises a plurality of surveillance apparatus, for example a first surveillance apparatus 106 located at a first site along the perimeter 104, a second surveillance apparatus 108 located at a second site along the perimeter 104, a third surveillance apparatus 110 located at a third site along the perimeter 104, and a fourth surveillance apparatus located 112 located at a fourth site along the perimeter 104.

[0030] In this example, the first surveillance apparatus 106 has a first lateral field of view 114, the second surveillance apparatus 108 has a second lateral field of view 116, the third surveillance apparatus 110 has a third lateral field of view 118 and the fourth surveillance apparatus 112 has a fourth lateral field of view 120. The first, second, third and fourth surveillance apparatus 106, 108, 110, 112 are each capable of communicating wirelessly with a central control unit 122.

[0031] Turning to Figure 2, in this example, the first, second, third and fourth surveillance apparatus 106, 108, 110, 112 are identical in construction although logically identifiable to the central control unit 122 independently. Consequently, for the sake of conciseness of description, the structure of the first surveillance apparatus 106 will now be described only, but the skilled person will appreciate that the second, third and fourth surveillance apparatus 108, 110, 112 are structured in a like manner.

[0032] The first surveillance apparatus 106 comprises an elongate mounting, for example a mounting that is cylindrical in shape, such as a pole 200, anchored in the ground 202 at a site of choice for locating the first surveillance apparatus 106. The pole 200 is anchored in the ground 202 in any manner suitable for the environment in which the first surveillance apparatus 106 is to be located, the manner of anchoring typically being decided following a site survey and can be, for example, by setting a lowermost portion (when deployed, not shown) at a proximal end of the pole 200 in a concrete foundation (also not shown).

[0033] An intermediate region 204 of the pole 200 is configured to carry a cylindrically curved photo-voltaic module 206. The photo-voltaic module 206 comprises, in this example, a series of cylindrical photo-voltaic sub-modules that wrap around or surround the circumference of the pole 200 and are stacked above one another in the direction of a longitudinal axis of the pole 200. However, in other examples, the skilled person should appreciate that the photo-voltaic module 206 can be formed as a single unit. As such, the photo-voltaic module 206 comprises a plurality of photo-voltaic cells disposed about the periphery of the pole 200.

[0034] At an uppermost region (when deployed) at a distal, free, end of the pole 200, a sensor module 208 is accommodated and will be described in further detail later herein. Adjacent the lowermost portion of the pole 200, a portion of the ground is excavated to provide a pit into which a pit housing 210 is disposed below ground level 212 or floor level. In this regard, the pit housing 210 constitutes a recessed housing. The pit housing 210 comprises a power supply disposed therein. For example, a battery 214, a backup power generator 216 and a source of fuel, for example a fuel tank 218, operably coupled to the backup power generator 216, are disposed within the pit housing 210. Each of the battery 214 and the backup power generator 216 constitute the power supply.

[0035] An electrical charging module 220 is housed within the pole 200 and operably coupled to photo-voltaic module 206 and the battery 214. An electrical power distribution unit 222 is operably coupled to the battery 214 and the backup power generator 216. The electrical distribution unit 222 is also operably coupled to the sensor module 208 in order to provide power to sensor devices that are part of the sensor module 208. The pit housing 210 is buried beneath the ground level 212 in order to protect and conceal the pit housing 210 comprising the battery 214, the backup generator 216, the fuel tank 218 and the power distribution unit 222. Burying the pit housing 210 also serves to attenuate and noise generated by anything disposed within the pit housing 210, as well as limit the visual impact of contents of the pit housing 210 on the surrounding environment. If required, an access hatch can nevertheless be provided on an upwardly facing surface of the pit housing 210 for maintenance purposes.

[0036] In this example, the backup power generator 216 is a fuel cell, for example a methanol fuel cell. However, any suitable fuel cell technology and accompanying fuel can be employed. As a consequence of the backup power generator 216 being a methanol fuel cell in this example, the fuel tank 218 comprises methanol as fuel.

When in use, the methanol fuel cell has good noise performance, i.e. emits relatively little noise, and produces odourless emissions, for example water and carbon dioxide. Other types of backup power generator that rely upon different fuels, for example gasoline or propane, can also be employed as the backup power generator 216, but are less desirable owing to their noise output levels and the waste, for example exhaust, compounds generated.

[0037] Referring to Figure 3, the sensor module 208 comprises a lower cylindrical housing portion 300 having a plurality of circumferentially spaced windows 302. The lower cylindrical housing portion 300 comprises a ranging system, for example a radar-based detection and tracking system, comprising signal processing and driving circuitry (not shown) operably coupled to a plurality of radar antennae 304 constituting a plurality of fixed beam projectors. The plurality of radar antennae 304 are angularly spaced with respect to the longitudinal axis of the pole 200. The windows 302 are recessed and respectively comprise the plurality of radar antennae 304. The signal processing and driving circuitry is also operably coupled to the power distribution unit 222. The radar antennae 304 provide, when in use, by way of beamforming, overlapping non-optical fields of view in order to detect and track objects constituting potential targets. In addition to the detection and tracking system, a camera device 306, for example a video camera, is disposed in an upper housing portion 308 above the lower cylindrical housing 300. The camera device 306 is rotatably mounted and, in this example, configured to rotate by up to 360 degrees about the longitudinal axis of the pole 200 and is also capable, in this example, of tilting and can tilt over an elevation angle of about ±45 degrees with respect to a central horizontal level. The amount of rotation of the camera device 306 of each of the surveillance apparatus 106, 108, 110, 112 can be set in accordance with the first, second, third and fourth lateral fields of view 114, 116, 118, 120. Similarly, a field of view associated with the plurality of radar antennae 304 of each of the surveillance apparatus 106, 108, 110, 112 can be set in accordance with the first, second, third and fourth lateral fields of view 114, 116, 118, 120.

[0038] Referring back to Figure 1 in conjunction with Figure 3, a communications antenna, for example a compact communications antenna 224, is disposed in the lower cylindrical housing portion 300 of Figure 3, and a communications module, for example a wireless communications module (not shown), is also disposed within the lower cylindrical housing portion 300 and operably coupled to the compact antenna 224 and the power distribution unit 222. In this example, the wireless communications module employs so-called multi-gigahertz communications technology to communicate with the central control unit 122. The communications antenna is, in this example, a strip antenna.

[0039] The skilled person should appreciate that the above-described implementations are merely examples of the various implementations that are conceivable within the scope of the appended claims. Indeed, whilst the above examples have been described in the context of a cylindrical pole 200, it should nevertheless be appreciated that the elongate support can be of any desirable and/or suitable cross section. In this regard, it is necessary for the intermediate portion 204 between the proximal and distal ends of the pole 200 to be able to receive the photo-voltaic module(s). In some examples, the elongate support can be formed with a varying cross-section, for example the intermediate portion 204 can possess a different cross-section to the regions near the extremities of the elongate support.

Claims (15)

1. Claims 1. A surveillance apparatus comprising: an elongate mounting having a proximal end configured to be anchored and a distal end configured to carry a sensor module, the elongate mounting comprising an intermediate portion extending between the proximal end and the distal end of the elongate mounting; and a photo-voltaic module configured to wrap around the intermediate portion of the elongate mounting.
2. 2. An apparatus as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the elongate mounting is configured to house an electrical charging unit, the electrical charging unit being operably coupled to the photo-voltaic module.
3. 3. An apparatus as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 2, wherein the photo-voltaic module comprises a plurality of photo-voltaic cells disposed about the periphery of the elongate mounting.
4. 4. An apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the 20 sensor module comprises a video camera.
5. 5. An apparatus as claimed in Claim 4, wherein the elongate mounting comprises a longitudinal axis and the video camera is rotatable about the longitudinal axis of the elongate mounting.
6. 6. An apparatus as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 4, wherein the sensor module comprises a ranging device
7. 7. An apparatus as claimed in Claim 6, wherein the elongate mounting comprises a longitudinal axis, and the ranging device comprises a plurality of fixed beam projectors angularly spaced about the longitudinal axis of the elongate mounting.
8. 8. An apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, further comprising: a recessed housing; and a power supply disposed within the recessed housing.
9. 9. An apparatus as claimed in Claim 8, wherein the recessed housing extends below ground level.
10. 10. An apparatus as claimed in Claim 8, wherein the power supply comprises a battery.
11. 11. An apparatus as claimed in Claim 10, when dependent upon Claim 2, wherein the battery is operably coupled to the electrical charging unit.
12. 12. An apparatus as claimed in Claim 8, wherein the power supply is an electric generator operably coupled to a source of fuel.
13. 13. An apparatus as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the distal end of the elongate mounting is free.
14. 14. An apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the proximal end of the elongate mounting is anchored in the ground at floor level.
15. 15. An apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the sensor module further comprises: a communications antenna; and a communication module operably coupled to the communications antenna.