AIRBORNE WIDEFIELD AIRSPACE IMAGING AND MONITORING

• US 20110184647A1
• Filed: 12/14/2010
• Published: 07/28/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/14/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: American Aerospace Advisors, Inc.
• Original Assignee: American Aerospace Advisors, Inc.
• Inventors: Yoel, David, Littlefield, John E., Hill, Robert Duane
• Granted Patent: US 8,494,760 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/301
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0021 located in the aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0069 specially adapted for an unmanned aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0078 for monitoring traffic from the aircraft radar or analogous systems specially adapted for traffic control G01S13/91

Abstract

A Widefield Airspace Imaging and Navigation System to provide UASs with wide field airspace imaging and collision avoidance capabilities. An array of optical lenses are distributed throughout the aircraft to provide an unobstructed view in all directions around the aircraft. Each collection lens is coupled through an optical fiber to a camera that multiplexes the several images. A processing system is connected to the wide array imaging system, and it runs an image interpolation program for resolving a background image and for distinguishing objects that are not moving with the background. In addition, a navigation control program reads the image interpolation software and, upon detection of an approaching object, implements a rule-based avoidance maneuver by sending an appropriate signal to the existing UAS autopilot.

Claims

1. A widefield airspace imaging and monitoring system for imaging the airspace around a vehicle, comprising:

a digital camera mounted within said vehicle, said camera having a digital image sensor;

a plurality of stationary collection lenses mounted in a distributed array about the vehicle and oriented in a plurality of angular orientations, each of said plurality stationary collection lenses having a pre-determined field of view, said angular orientations being calculated so that the field of view of each of said plurality stationary collection lenses overlaps with the field of view of another of said plurality stationary collection lenses; and

a plurality of optical fiber image transfer devices each connected at one end to a corresponding one of said plurality of stationery collection lenses; and

a mechanical mount connected to the other end of said plurality of optical fibers in such a way so as to project the images captured by each of said plurality stationary collection lenses onto adjacent defined subareas of said digital camera image sensor, thereby forming a mosaic of narrow-field images resolved by said camera into a wide field image of the airspace surrounding the vehicle.

2. The widefield airspace imaging and monitoring system for imaging the airspace around a vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising a processing system connected to the wide array imaging system, said processing system further including:

a processor and memory for storing software; and

an image interpolation software module stored in said memory for resolving a background image within said wide field airspace image and for distinguishing objects that are not moving with the background image.

3. The widefield airspace imaging and monitoring system for imaging the airspace around a vehicle according to claim 2, wherein said processing system further includes a collision target extraction software module for interfacing between the image interpolation software module and an existing UAS autopilot system for rule-based avoidance maneuver decision making based on objects distinguished by said image interpolation software module that are not moving with the background image.

4. The widefield airspace imaging and monitoring system for imaging the airspace around a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said mosaic of narrow-field images are resolved by said camera into a wide field image of a full 360 degree view of said airspace around the vehicle.

5. The widefield airspace imaging and monitoring system for imaging the airspace around a vehicle according to claim 4, wherein said plurality of stationary collection lenses consist of six (6) stationary collection lenses.

6. The widefield airspace imaging and monitoring system for imaging the airspace around a vehicle according to claim 5, wherein each of said six (6) stationary collection lenses has a 112 degree field of view.

7. The widefield airspace imaging and monitoring system for imaging the airspace around a vehicle according to claim 5, wherein said six (6) stationary collection lenses further comprise a first lens mounted on a leading upward distal tip of a right-side wing of said vehicle, a second lens mounted on an aft upward distal tip of a right-side wing of said vehicle, a third lens mounted on a leading downward distal tip of a right-side wing of said vehicle, a fourth lens mounted on a leading upward distal tip of a left-side wing of said vehicle, a fifth lens mounted on an aft upward distal tip of a left-side wing of said vehicle, and a sixth lens mounted on a leading downward distal tip of a right-side wing of said vehicle.

8. The widefield airspace imaging and monitoring system for imaging the airspace around a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of stationary collection lenses consist of six (6) stationary collection lenses.

9. The widefield airspace imaging and monitoring system for imaging the airspace around a vehicle according to claim 8, wherein each of said six (6) stationary collection lenses has a 64 degree field of view.

10. The widefield airspace imaging and monitoring system for imaging the airspace around a vehicle according to claim 9, wherein said mosaic of narrow-field images are resolved by said camera into a wide field image of a 220 by 30 degree view of said airspace around the vehicle.

11. The widefield airspace imaging and monitoring system for imaging the airspace around a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the ends of said plurality of optical fibers connected to said mechanical mount are rectangular in cross section.

12. The widefield airspace imaging and monitoring system for imaging the airspace around a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said mechanical mount comprises a mounting block positioned to resolve the discrete images from each of said six (6) stationary collection lenses directly onto the imaging sensor of said camera.

13. The widefield airspace imaging and monitoring system for imaging the airspace around a vehicle according to claim 12, wherein said digital camera imaging sensor comprises a 15 million pixel imaging sensor.

14. The widefield airspace imaging and monitoring system for imaging the airspace around a vehicle according to claim 13, wherein said mechanical mount comprises a mounting block positioned to resolve the discrete images from each of said six (6) stationary collection lenses into six defined 2.5 million pixel mosaics of said image sensor.

15. The widefield airspace imaging and monitoring system for imaging the airspace around a vehicle according to claim 2, wherein said processor is a field-programmable gate array (FPGA)-based processor.

16. The widefield airspace imaging and monitoring system for imaging the airspace around a vehicle according to claim 2, wherein said image interpolation software module distinguishes objects that are not moving within a background image by analyzing sequential image frames, identifying image features moving at a constant rate between sequential frames, and then identifying features moving at a different speed than said constant rate within the defined background.

17. The widefield airspace imaging and monitoring system for imaging the airspace around a vehicle according to claim 2, wherein said image interpolation software module sends a command to the UAS autopilot system for rule-based avoidance maneuver decision making.

18. The widefield airspace imaging and monitoring system for imaging the airspace around a vehicle according to claim 17, wherein said command may be any one from among the group consisting of change direction, change speed, and change altitude.

19. An airborne imaging system for monitoring airspace by a UAS, comprising:

a wide array imaging system, including,

a single high definition camera mounted within the vehicle,

an array of collection lenses distributed throughout the vehicle to provide a wide field of view from a plurality of narrower overlapping fields of view,

a plurality of optical fiber image transfer devices each coupled to one of said collection lenses for conveying the optical image there from,

a mechanical mount coupled to one end of said plurality of optical fibers for multiplexing the several images there from onto a single imaging sensor,

said imaging sensor having a plurality of predefined image areas; and

a processing system connected to said wide array imaging system, said processing system including an image interpolation software program for resolving a background image and for distinguishing objects that are not moving with the background image.

20. The airborne imaging system for monitoring airspace according to claim 19, further comprising a navigation control software program for interfacing between the image interpolation software program and an existing UAS autopilot system for rule-based avoidance maneuver decision making based on the identified objects not moving with the background.

21. The airborne imaging system for monitoring airspace according to claim 19, wherein said multiplexing of the several images onto said single imaging sensor mosaic are resolved into a wide field image of a full 360 degree spherical view of said airspace around the vehicle.

22. The airborne imaging system for monitoring airspace according to claim 19, wherein said multiplexing of the several images onto said single imaging sensor mosaic are resolved into a wide field image of a subset of a 360 degree view of said airspace around the vehicle.

23. The airborne imaging system for monitoring airspace according to claim 19, wherein said array of collection lenses distributed throughout the vehicle comprise a plurality of stationery lenses mounted at spatially separated positions about said vehicle and oriented in different angular orientations.

24. The airborne imaging system for monitoring airspace according to claim 19, wherein said array of collection lenses distributed throughout the vehicle comprise a plurality of stationery lenses mounted at spatially separated positions about said vehicle and oriented in a common angular orientation.

25. The airborne imaging system for monitoring airspace according to claim 24, wherein said array of collection lenses provide overlapping fields of view for improved object range determination based on stereoscopic imaging.

26. The airborne imaging system for monitoring airspace according to claim 25, wherein said camera is one of a frame camera for acquiring a sequence of individual images or a video camera for acquiring images at a high frame rate.

27. The airborne imaging system for monitoring airspace according to claim 25, wherein said camera acquires images in any one or more of the following segments of the light spectrum, comprising color, near infrared, short wave infrared, medium wave infrared or long wave infrared segments of the spectrum.