Method for locomotive navigation and track identification using video

• US 20090037039A1
• Filed: 09/27/2007
• Published: 02/05/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/01/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: General Electric Company
• Original Assignee: General Electric Company
• Inventors: Sebastian, Thomas Baby, Wheeler, Frederick Wilson, Kaucic, Robert August, Kumar, Ajith Kuttannair, Yu, Ting, Shaffer, Glenn Robert, Mendonca, Paulo Ricardo
• Application Number:
  US11/904,761
• Publication Number:
  US 20090037039A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/19
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 2205/04 Satellite based navigation systems, e.g. global positioning system [GPS]
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 23/041 Obstacle detection
• CPC Class Codes: B61L 25/025 Absolute localisation, e.g. providing geodetic coordinates
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/10016 Video; Image sequence
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/20068 Projection on vertical or horizontal image axis
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30236 Traffic on road, railway or crossing
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30252 Vehicle exterior; Vicinity of vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30256 Lane; Road marking
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/73 using feature-based methods

Abstract

A system for determining a track location operates to acquire a current video frame via at least one video camera mounted on board a locomotive, determine a track location based on information extracted from the at least one video frame, and transmit the track location information to a navigation system to determine control parameters for the locomotive.

Claims

1. A method of locomotive navigation and track identification, the method comprising:

acquiring at least one current video frame via at least one video camera mounted on a locomotive;

processing the at least one current video frame to identify each rail or pairs of rails occupied by the locomotive; and

transmitting information about the identified rail or pairs of rails to a navigation system to determine desired control parameters for the locomotive.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the desired control parameters are selected from speed and routing control parameters.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein processing the at least one current video frame to determine each rail or pairs of rails occupied by the locomotive comprises:

determining a near-field track vanishing point either based on current video frame calibration information or by computing it automatically; and

determining each rail or pairs of rails occupied by the locomotive based on near-field track vanishing point constraints.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein determining the near-field track vanishing point based on current video frame calibration information comprises determining the near-field track vanishing point based on pixel point directional data.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein determining the near-field track vanishing point based on current video frame calibration information comprises determining the near-field track vanishing point based on pixel point dominant orientation data.

6. The method of claim 3, wherein determining the near-field track vanishing point based on current video frame calibration information comprises determining the near-field track vanishing point based on video camera viewing angles.

7. The method of claim 3, further comprising determining the near-field track vanishing point based on a database of track information selected from at least one of the number of tracks, the gauge of the tracks, the distances between the tracks and the relative heights of the tracks.

8. The method of claim 3, wherein determining each rail or pairs of rails occupied by the locomotive based on near-field track vanishing point constraints comprises determining each rail or pairs of rails occupied by the locomotive based on two-dimensional intercept and slope data associated with an acquired track image.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein determining a locomotive track location based on acquired video frame information comprises determining each rail or pairs of rails occupied by the locomotive based on two-dimensional intercept data and slope data associated with an acquired track image.

10. A method of locomotive navigation and control, the method comprising:

determining a locomotive track location based on acquired video frame information; and

transmitting the track location to a navigation system to determine desired control parameters for the locomotive based on the track location.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the desired control parameters are selected from speed and routing parameters.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein determining a locomotive track location based on acquired video frame information comprises determining a near-field track vanishing point based on current video frame calibration information.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein determining the near-field track vanishing point based on current video frame calibration information comprises determining the near-field track vanishing point based on pixel point directional data.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein determining the near-field track vanishing point based on current video frame calibration information comprises determining the near-field track vanishing point based on pixel point dominant orientation data.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein determining the near-field track vanishing point based on current video frame calibration information comprises determining the near-field track vanishing point based on video camera viewing angles.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein determining a locomotive track location based on acquired video frame information further comprises determining the near-field track vanishing point based on a database of track information selected from at least one of the number of tracks, the gauge of the tracks, the distances between the tracks and the relative heights of the tracks.

17. The method of claim 10, wherein determining a locomotive track location based on acquired video frame information comprises determining each rail or pairs of rails occupied by the locomotive based on two-dimensional intercept data and slope data associated with an acquired track image.

18. A locomotive navigation and identification system comprising:

at least one video camera mounted on a locomotive and configured to acquire at least one video frame; and

a data processing system on-board the locomotive and configured to determine at least one track location based on information extracted from the at least one acquired video frame.

19. The locomotive navigation and identification system of claim 18, wherein the data processing system comprises a database of track information selected from at least one of the number of tracks, the gauge of the tracks, the distances between the tracks and the relative heights of the tracks.

20. The locomotive navigation and identification system of claim 19, wherein the data processing system is further configured to determine a near-field track vanishing point based on the database of track information.

21. The locomotive navigation and identification system of claim 20, wherein the near-field track vanishing point constraints comprise slope data and intercept data associated with each track.

22. The locomotive navigation and identification system of claim 20, wherein the near-field track vanishing point constraints comprise pixel point directional data.

23. The locomotive navigation and identification system of claim 20, wherein the near-field track vanishing point constraints comprise pixel point dominant orientation data.

24. The locomotive navigation and identification system of claim 18, wherein the information extracted from the at least one acquired video frame comprises two-dimensional intercept data and slope data associated with an acquired track image.