Pan and tilt camera system
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A pan and tilt system, comprising:
- a panning equipment that facilitates panning a payload about a pan axis;
a tilting equipment connected to the panning equipment, where the tilting equipment facilitates tilting the payload about a tilt axis, where the tilt axis pivots approximately about the center of mass of the payload and where the tilt axis is arranged perpendicular to and in the same plane as the pan axis; and
an onboard controlling computer component that controls one or more of the panning equipment and the tilting equipment.
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Abstract
A pan and tilt camera system is provided. The system involves positioning a payload (e.g., camera, sensor, controlling electronics) with its center of mass substantially centered over both the pan and tilt axes, which facilitates increasing the payload of a pan and tilt system by reducing and making more constant the load on panning and/or tilting motors. With the more constant motor loads, smoother and finer camera and/or sensor control is possible than with conventional systems. Example systems also provide for belt drive motors, a survivable casing, and a casing adapted for a larger variety of lens sizes.
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Citations
33 Claims
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1. A pan and tilt system, comprising:
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a panning equipment that facilitates panning a payload about a pan axis;
a tilting equipment connected to the panning equipment, where the tilting equipment facilitates tilting the payload about a tilt axis, where the tilt axis pivots approximately about the center of mass of the payload and where the tilt axis is arranged perpendicular to and in the same plane as the pan axis; and
an onboard controlling computer component that controls one or more of the panning equipment and the tilting equipment. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26)
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27. A pan and tilt system, comprising:
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a panning equipment that facilitates panning a payload about a pan axis;
a tilting equipment connected to the panning equipment, where the tilting equipment facilitates tilting the payload about a tilt axis, where the tilt axis pivots approximately about the center of mass of the payload and where the tilt axis is arranged perpendicular to and in the same plane as the pan axis;
one or more panning motors for generating a panning force for panning the payload, where the one or more panning motors are connected to the panning equipment by a panning belt drive, and where the one or more panning motors are DC servo motors controlled via PWM;
one or more tilting motors for generating a tilting force for tilting the payload, where the one or more tilting motors are connected to the tilting equipment by a tilting belt drive, and where the one or more tilting motors are DC servo motors controlled via PWM;
one or more onboard computer components for controlling one or more of the panning motors, the tilting motors, the panning equipment, and the tilting equipment;
a direct current receiver that receives direct current that can be employed by one or more of the more panning motors and the tilting motors to produce the forces for panning or tilting the payload;
an alternating current receiver that receives alternating current that can be employed by one or more of the panning motors and the tilting motors to produce the forces for panning or tilting the payload;
a communication protocol computer component for receiving one or more control commands from an external computer component;
a fiber optic communicator that communicates a bidirectional data stream between an external computer component and the communication protocol computer component;
a survivable cover that substantially encloses the system;
an automatic repositioning logic that selectively controls the tilting motors or panning motors to reposition the payload upon the occurrence of a pre-determined condition;
an image stabilizing logic that receives an image from a camera in the payload and stabilizes the image;
an image colorization logic that colorizes an image received from a camera in the payload;
a target tracking logic that selectively controls the tilting motors or panning motors to reposition the payload upon detecting an object of interest;
a GPS receiver in data communication with the onboard computer components, where the onboard computer components selectively control the system based, at least in part, on data received from the GPS receiver; and
a climate control apparatus that selectively alters the climate inside the system. - View Dependent Claims (28, 29, 30, 31, 32)
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33. A pan and tilt system, comprising:
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means for panning a payload about a pan axis;
means for tilting a payload about a tilt axis, where the means for tilting are connected to the means for panning and where the tilt axis associated with the means for tilting pivots approximately about the center of mass of the payload and where the tilt axis associated with the means for tilting is arranged perpendicular to and in the same plane as the pan axis associated with the means for panning;
means for applying a panning force, where the means for applying the panning force is connected to the means for panning by a belt drive;
means for applying a tilting force, where the means for applying the tilting force is connected to the means for tilting by a belt drive; and
an onboard computer component for controlling one or more of the means for panning, the means for tilting, the means for applying a panning force, and the means for applying a tilting force.
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Specification