Protective surveillance system

Claim 1

A surveillance system for monitoring subjects in a surveillance area to protect the subjects while preserving their privacy comprising: imaging means having a field of view directed to a surveillance area containing at least first and second subjects for monitoring said area and for producing sequential images of at least a part of said area and at least first said subject; output means connected to said imaging means and producing image signals corresponding to said images; a recorder having an input coupled to said output means for receiving said image signals, said recorder being operable to receive and record successive image signals selectively at a first rate or a second rate to provide a record of activity within said surveillance area; controller means for adjusting said recorder to record only selected image signals for protecting the privacy of said subjects; said controller means includes means for adjusting said recorder to record image signals at a selected rate between a first rate representing a dormant mode at a second rate representing an active mode; said controller means including a control network responsive to activity within said surveillance area to shift said recorder from said normal operation at said first rate representing a dormant mode to said second rate representing an active mode; said controller means further including a variable time lapse signal generator to adjust said recorder to operate with a selected time lapse between successive recorded image signals; wherein said variable time lapse signal generator only if said controller means is in said dormant mode and wherein said time lapse signal generator is variable to adjust said recorder to operate with a random time lapse between successive recorded image signals.