Remote sensing of structure damage

• US 10,354,386 B1
• Filed: 06/14/2016
• Issued: 07/16/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 01/27/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: United Services Automobile Association
• Original Assignee: United Services Automobile Association
• Inventors: Farnsworth, Anthony Scott, Voutour, Teddy Joseph Edmond, Allen, Michael J., Newmark, Jordan A., Swain, Kathleen L., Gingrich, Jess W., Castiglione, Anthony G.
• Primary Examiner(s): Sood, Anshul
• Application Number:
  US15/182,431
• Time in Patent Office: 1,127 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30184 Infrastructure
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/13 Edge detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/183 for receiving images from a single remote source
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/185 from a mobile camera, e.g. for remote control

Abstract

Unmanned vehicles can be terrestrial, aerial, nautical, or multi-mode. Unmanned vehicles may be used to survey a property in response to or in anticipation of damage to an object. Methods, systems, and devices may be used to determine damage information associated with structures (objects) in aerial images obtained by an unmanned vehicle, or other source. The damage information may include intensity of damage of a structure in an image.

Claims

1. A device comprising:

a processor; and

a memory coupled with the processor, the memory having stored thereon executable instructions that when executed by the processor to cause the processor to effectuate operations comprising;

receiving an image of at least one structure;

generating a damage intensity plane of the image based on analysis of pixels in the image;

based on the damage intensity plane, generating a damage intensity metric for at least a portion of the at least one structure by averaging pixel information, and

based on the damage intensity metric, determining damage to the at least one structure.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the at least one structure is a house.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein the image is an aerial perspective of the at least one structure.

4. The device of claim 1, wherein the generating the damage intensity plane is based on an edge detection technique.

5. The device of claim 1, wherein the at least the portion of the at least one structure is a roof of a house.

6. The device of claim 1, wherein the generating the damage intensity plane is based on a hue, saturation, and luminance technique.

7. The device of claim 1, further comprising providing instructions to a camera of an unmanned vehicle to take a picture of the at least one structure based on the damage intensity metric reaching a threshold.

8. A method comprising:

receiving, by a computing device, an image of at least one structure;

generating a damage intensity plane of the image based on analysis of pixels in the image;

based on the damage intensity plane, generating a damage intensity metric for at least a portion of the at least one structure by averaging pixel information;

based on the damage intensity metric, determining damage to the at least one structure; and

based on the determining damage to the at least one structure, determining a repair to perform to the at least one structure.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the at least one structure is a house.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the at least the portion of the at least one structure is a roof of a house.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the image is an aerial perspective of the at least one structure.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the generating the damage intensity plane is based on an edge detection technique.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein the generating the damage intensity plane is based on a hue, saturation, and luminance technique.

14. The method of claim 8, further comprising providing instructions to a camera of an unmanned vehicle to take a picture of the at least one structure based on the damage intensity metric reaching a threshold.

15. A system comprising:

a sensor;

an unmanned vehicle connected with the sensor; and

a device communicatively connected with the sensor or the unmanned vehicle, the device comprising;

a processor; and

a memory coupled with the processor, the memory having stored thereon executable instructions that when executed by the processor to cause the processor to effectuate operations comprising;

receiving an image of at least one structure;

generating a damage intensity plane of the image based on analysis of pixels in the image;

based on the damage intensity plane, generating a damage intensity metric for at least a portion of the at least one structure by averaging pixel information;

based on the damage intensity metric, determining damage to the at least one structure; and

sending, to a computing device, an indication of the damage to the at least one structure.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the at least one structure is a house.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the image is an aerial perspective of the at least one structure.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein the generating the damage intensity plane is based on an edge detection technique.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein the generating the damage intensity plane is based on a hue, saturation, and luminance technique.

20. The system of claim 15, further comprising providing instructions to a camera of an unmanned vehicle to take a picture of the at least one structure based on the damage intensity metric reaching a threshold.