System and method for control based on face or hand gesture detection

Abstract

System and method for control using face detection or hand gesture detection algorithms in a captured image. Based on the existence of a detected human face or a hand gesture in an image captured by a digital camera (still or video), a control signal is generated and provided to a device. The control may provide power or disconnect power supply to the device (or part of the device circuits). Further, the location of the detected face in the image may be used to rotate a display screen horizontally, vertically or both, to achieve a better line of sight with a viewing person. If two or more faces are detected, the average location is calculated and used for line of sight correction. A linear feedback control loop is implemented wherein detected face deviation from the optimum is the error to be corrected by rotating the display to the required angular position. A hand gesture detection can be used as a replacement to a remote control wherein the various hand gestures control the various function of the controlled unit, such as a television set.

1 . A device for displaying serially carried digital video data by a video display, for use with a Local Area Network (LAN) cable simultaneously carrying DC power and the serial digital video data over the same wires, the device comprising:
 a LAN connector for connecting to the LAN cable;   a transceiver coupled to the LAN connector receiving the serial digital video data from the LAN cable;   a video connector for connecting to the video display, the video connector coupled to the transceiver for displaying the serial digital video data by the video display;   software and a processor to execute the software coupled to control the transceiver; and   a single enclosure housing the LAN connector, the transceiver, the video connector, and the processor,   wherein the transceiver and the processor are coupled to the LAN connector for being powered by the DC power.   
     
     
         2 . The device according to  claim 1 , further comprising the video display, wherein the single enclosure further houses the video display. 
     
     
         3 . The device according to  claim 2 , wherein the video display is coupled to the LAN connector for being powered by the DC power. 
     
     
         4 . The device according to  claim 2 , wherein the video display comprises a silicon-based flat screen. 
     
     
         5 . The device according to  claim 4 , wherein the flat screen is LED (Light Emitting Diode), LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), or TFT (Thin-Film Transistor) based. 
     
     
         6 . The device according to  claim 1 , further operative for displaying High Definition (HD) by the video display, wherein the video connector is an HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) connector for displaying HD video by the video display. 
     
     
         7 . The device according to  claim 1 , further comprising a power/data splitter having first, second, and third ports for passing the serial digital video data between the first and second ports and for passing the DC power between the first and third ports, the first port coupled to the LAN connector, and the second port coupled to the transceiver. 
     
     
         8 . The device according to  claim 7 , wherein the third port is coupled to the processor for powering the processor from the DC power. 
     
     
         9 . The device according to  claim 7 , wherein the DC power and the serial digital video data are carried using Frequency Division/Domain Multiplexing (FDM), where the serial digital video data is carried in a frequency band above, and distinct from, the DC power. 
     
     
         10 . The device according to  claim 9 , wherein the power/data splitter comprises a high pass filter between the first and second ports and a low pass filter between the first and third ports. 
     
     
         11 . The device according to  claim 9 , wherein the power/data splitter comprises a transformer having windings and a capacitor connected between the transformer windings. 
     
     
         12 . The device according to  claim 1 , further operative for receiving and displaying television channels by the video display. 
     
     
         13 . The device according to  claim 12 , further comprising, or consisting of, a television set. 
     
     
         14 . The device according to  claim 1 , wherein the transceiver comprises a LAN transceiver. 
     
     
         15 . The device according to  claim 14 , wherein the LAN cable is based on, or uses, twisted-pair copper wires, the LAN transceiver is according to, compatible with, or based on, 10Base-T, 100Base-TX, or 1000Base-T, and the LAN connector is RJ-45 type connector. 
     
     
         16 . The device according to  claim 15 , wherein the LAN cable is according to, compatible with, or based on, EIA/TIA-568 or EIA/TIA-570. 
     
     
         17 . The device according to  claim 15 , wherein the LAN cable is a structured wiring cable according to, compatible with, or based on, Category 3, 4, 5e, 6, 6e, or 7 cable. 
     
     
         18 . The device according to  claim 15 , wherein the cable comprises Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP) or Shielded Twisted Pair (STP) wires. 
     
     
         19 . The device according to  claim 14 , wherein the LAN is an Ethernet-based LAN that is according to, compatible with, or based on, IEEE 802.3-2008 standard. 
     
     
         20 . The device according to  claim 1 , wherein the DC power and the serial digital video data are carried according to, compatible with, or based on, IEEE 802.3af-2003 or IEEE 802.3at-2009 standard. 
     
     
         21 . The device according to  claim 1 , wherein the serial digital video data comprises captured digital video data that is compressed according to a compression scheme. 
     
     
         22 . The device according to  claim 21 , wherein the compression scheme is lossy or lossless type. 
     
     
         23 . The device according to  claim 21 , wherein the compression scheme is according to, compatible with, or based on, JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) or MPEG (Moving Picture Experts Group) standard. 
     
     
         24 . The device according to  claim 1 , further for initiating and receiving telephone calls over a telephone network. 
     
     
         25 . The device according to  claim 24 , wherein the telephone network is a cellular telephone network. 
     
     
         26 . The device according to  claim 25 , further for initiating and receiving telephone calls over a cellular network, the device further comprising in the single enclosure:
 a cellular antenna for over-the-air radio-frequency communication; and   a cellular modem coupled to the cellular antenna for transmitting serial digital data to, or receiving serial digital data from, the cellular telephone network.   
     
     
         27 . The device according to  claim 26 , further comprising, or consisting of, a cellular telephone device. 
     
     
         28 . The device according to  claim 26 , wherein the communication over the cellular network is according to, compatible with, or is based on, GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications), GPRS (General Packet Radio Service), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), EDGE (Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution), 3GSM, DECT (Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications), Digital AMPS, or iDEN (Integrated Digital Enhanced Network). 
     
     
         29 . The device according to  claim 26 , wherein the cellular modem is coupled to the video display for receiving information from the cellular network and displaying the received information on the video display. 
     
     
         30 . A device for use with a Local Area Network (LAN) cable simultaneously carrying DC power and bi-directional serial digital data over the same wires, the device comprising:
 a digital video camera for capturing digital video data;   a LAN connector for connecting to the cable;   a transceiver coupled between the LAN connector and the digital video camera for transmitting the digital video data to the cable;   an image processor coupled between the digital video camera and the transceiver for receiving the digital video data, for detecting an element in the digital video data, and for transmitting a signal to the LAN cable responsive to the element detection; and   software and a processor to execute the software coupled to control the image processor, the transceiver, and the digital video camera; and   a single enclosure housing the digital video camera, the processor, the LAN connector, the image processor, and the transceiver,   wherein the device is powered by the DC power.   
     
     
         31 . The device according to  claim 30 , further comprising a video display coupled to display the digital video data, wherein the single enclosure further houses the video display. 
     
     
         32 . The device according to  claim 31 , wherein the video display is coupled to the LAN connector for being powered by the DC power. 
     
     
         33 . The device according to  claim 31 , wherein the video display comprises a silicon-based flat screen. 
     
     
         34 . The device according to  claim 33 , wherein the flat screen is LED (Light Emitting Diode), LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), or TFT (Thin-Film Transistor) based. 
     
     
         35 . The device according to  claim 31 , further operative for displaying High Definition (HD) by the video display, wherein the video display is an HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) display for displaying HD video. 
     
     
         36 . The device according to  claim 30 , further comprising a power/data splitter having first, second, and third ports for passing the digital video data between the first and second ports and for passing the DC power between the first and third ports, the first port coupled to the LAN connector, and the second port coupled to the transceiver. 
     
     
         37 . The device according to  claim 36 , wherein the third port is coupled to the processor for powering the processor from the DC power. 
     
     
         38 . The device according to  claim 36 , wherein the DC power and the digital video data are carried using Frequency Division/Domain Multiplexing (FDM), where the digital video data is carried in a frequency band above, and distinct from, the DC power. 
     
     
         39 . The device according to  claim 38 , wherein the power/data splitter comprises a high pass filter between the first and second ports and a low pass filter between the first and third ports. 
     
     
         40 . The device according to  claim 38 , wherein the power/data splitter comprises a transformer having windings and a capacitor connected between the transformer windings. 
     
     
         41 . The device according to  claim 30 , wherein the transceiver comprises a LAN transceiver. 
     
     
         42 . The device according to  claim 41 , wherein the LAN cable is based on, or uses, twisted-pair copper wires, the LAN transceiver is according to, compatible with, or based on, 10Base-T, 100Base-TX, or 1000Base-T, and the LAN connector is RJ-45 type connector. 
     
     
         43 . The device according to  claim 42 , wherein the LAN cable is according to, compatible with, or based on, EIA/TIA-568 or EIA/TIA-570. 
     
     
         44 . The device according to  claim 42 , wherein the LAN cable is a structured wiring cable according to, compatible with, or based on, Category 3, 4, 5e, 6, 6e, or 7 cable. 
     
     
         45 . The device according to  claim 42 , wherein the cable comprises Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP) or Shielded Twisted Pair (STP) wires. 
     
     
         46 . The device according to  claim 42 , wherein the LAN is an Ethernet-based LAN that is according to, compatible with, or based on, IEEE 802.3-2008 standard. 
     
     
         47 . The device according to  claim 30 , wherein the DC power and the digital video data are carried according to, compatible with, or based on, IEEE 802.3af-2003 or IEEE 802.3at-2009 standard. 
     
     
         48 . The device according to  claim 30 , wherein the digital video camera comprises:
 an optical lens for focusing received light;   a photosensitive image sensor array disposed approximately at an image focal point plane of the optical lens for capturing an image and producing electronic image information representing the image; and   an analog-to-digital (A/D) converter coupled to the image sensor for generating a digital data representation of the image.   
     
     
         49 . The device according to  claim 48 , wherein the image sensor array is based on, or uses, Charge-Coupled Devices (CCD) or Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor (CMOS) elements. 
     
     
         50 . The device according to  claim 30 , further comprising a video compressor coupled between the digital video camera and the transceiver for compressing the captured digital video data according to a compression scheme. 
     
     
         51 . The device according to  claim 50 , wherein the compression scheme is lossy or lossless type. 
     
     
         52 . The device according to  claim 50 , wherein the compression scheme is according to, compatible with, or based on, JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) or MPEG (Moving Picture Experts Group) standard. 
     
     
         53 . The device according to  claim 30 , further for initiating and receiving telephone calls over a telephone network. 
     
     
         54 . The device according to  claim 53 , wherein the telephone network is a cellular telephone network. 
     
     
         55 . The device according to  claim 54 , further for initiating and receiving telephone calls over a cellular network, the device further comprising:
 a cellular antenna for over-the-air radio-frequency communication; and   a cellular modem coupled to the cellular antenna for transmitting serial digital data to, or receiving serial digital data from, the cellular telephone network.   
     
     
         56 . The device according to  claim 55 , further comprising, or consisting of, a cellular telephone device. 
     
     
         57 . The device according to  claim 55 , wherein the communication over the cellular network is according to, compatible with, or is based on, GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications), GPRS (General Packet Radio Service), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), EDGE (Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution), 3GSM, DECT (Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications), Digital AMPS, or iDEN (Integrated Digital Enhanced Network). 
     
     
         58 . The device according to  claim 30 , wherein the element is a body part. 
     
     
         59 . The device according to  claim 58 , wherein the body part is a human hand. 
     
     
         60 . The device according to  claim 59 , wherein the element is a hand gesture. 
     
     
         61 . The device according to  claim 58 , wherein the body part is a human face. 
     
     
         62 . The device according to  claim 30 , further responsive to a change in a position of the detected element.