TRACKING A MOVING OBJECT FROM A CAMERA ON A MOVING PLATFORM
First Claim
1. A method to dynamically stabilize a target image formed on an image plane of an imaging device located in a moving vehicle, the method comprising:
- setting an origin in the image plane of the imaging device at an intersection of a first axis, a second axis and a third axis, wherein the third axis is an optical axis of the imaging device;
imaging a target so that an image centroid of the target image is at the origin of the image plane;
monitoring sensor data indicative of a motion of the vehicle; and
generating pan and tilt output to stabilize the image centroid at the origin in the image plane to compensate for vehicle motion and target motion, wherein the pan and tilt output are generated by implementing exponentially stabilizing control laws, wherein implementing the exponentially stabilizing control laws is based at least in part on the sensor data including data indicative of a distance to the target.
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Abstract
A method to dynamically stabilize a target image formed on an image plane of an imaging device located in a moving vehicle. The method includes setting an origin in the image plane of the imaging device at an intersection of a first axis, a second axis and a third axis, imaging a target so that an image centroid of the target image is at the origin of the image plane, monitoring sensor data indicative of a motion of the vehicle, and generating pan and tilt output to stabilize the image centroid at the origin in the image plane to compensate for vehicle motion and target motion. The pan and tilt output are generated by implementing exponentially stabilizing control laws. The implementation of the exponentially stabilizing control laws is based at least in part on the sensor data.
30 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method to dynamically stabilize a target image formed on an image plane of an imaging device located in a moving vehicle, the method comprising:
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setting an origin in the image plane of the imaging device at an intersection of a first axis, a second axis and a third axis, wherein the third axis is an optical axis of the imaging device; imaging a target so that an image centroid of the target image is at the origin of the image plane; monitoring sensor data indicative of a motion of the vehicle; and generating pan and tilt output to stabilize the image centroid at the origin in the image plane to compensate for vehicle motion and target motion, wherein the pan and tilt output are generated by implementing exponentially stabilizing control laws, wherein implementing the exponentially stabilizing control laws is based at least in part on the sensor data including data indicative of a distance to the target. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A system comprising:
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an imaging device positioned within a moving vehicle, the imaging device having an image plane including an origin at an intersection of a first axis, a second axis and a third axis; sensors to sense translation and rotations of the vehicle about a fourth axis, a fifth axis and a sixth axis and to sense a distance to a target; and a programmable processor adapted to execute software to implement exponentially stabilizing control laws to maintain an image centroid of the target image at the origin of the image plane, the programmable processor communicatively coupled to receive sensor data from the sensors and to generate rotation output to stabilize the target image formed on the image plane of the imaging device when the vehicle moves with respect to a target. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for performing a method comprising:
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determining the transformation of an origin of an imaging device positioned in a vehicle based on received first translation data and first rotation data; implementing exponentially stabilizing control laws based on the determined transformation and a distance to an image target; generating a rotation output from the exponentially stabilizing control laws adapted to redirect an optical axis of the imaging device to maintain an image centroid within a selected distance from the origin of the imaging device; generating a zoom output from the exponentially stabilizing control laws adapted to modify a lens system of the imaging device, wherein an apparent distance between the imaged target and the imaging device is maintained; determining a system latency in redirecting the optical axis and modifying the lens system along the optical axis; and determining the transformation of the origin of the imaging device with respect to global coordinates based on second translation data and second rotation data monitored during at least one of the pitch, the yaw, and the roll of the vehicle, the redirecting of the optical axis, the modifying of the lens system, and the system latency, wherein the centroid of the target image is maintained within a selected distance from the origin of the imaging device and the apparent distance between the imaged target and the imaging device is maintained. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification