Remote Control System

• US 20130038692A1
• Filed: 08/02/2012
• Published: 02/14/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/09/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Topcon
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Topcon
• Inventors: Osaragi, Kazuki, Anai, Tetsuji, Ohtomo, Fumio
• Granted Patent: US 9,158,305 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/46
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0016 characterised by the operator's input device input arrangements for computing systems in general G06F3/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0038 by providing the operator with simple or augmented images from one or more cameras located onboard the vehicle, e.g. tele-operation images analyzed by a computer and used for automatic navigation G05D1/0246

Abstract

A remote control system comprises a mobile object, a remote controller for remotely controlling the mobile object, and a storage unit where background images to simulate a driving room or an operation room of the mobile object are stored. The mobile object has a stereo camera, a camera control unit for controlling image pickup direction of the stereo camera, and a first communication unit for communicating information including at least images photographed by the stereo camera. The remote controller has a second communication unit for communicating to and from the first communication unit, a control unit for controlling the mobile object, and a display unit for synthesizing at least a part of the images photographed by the stereo camera and the background images and for displaying the images so that a stereoscopic view can be displayed.

Claims

1. A remote control system, comprising a mobile object, a remote controller for remotely controlling the mobile object, and a storage unit where background images to simulate a driving room or an operation room of the mobile object are stored, wherein said mobile object has a stereo camera, a camera control unit for controlling image pickup direction of said stereo camera, and a first communication unit for performing communication of information including at least images photographed by said stereo camera, and said remote controller has a second communication unit for performing communication to and from said first communication unit, a control unit for controlling said mobile object, and a display unit for synthesizing at least a part of the images photographed by said stereo camera and said background images and for displaying the images so that a stereoscopic view can be displayed.

2. A remote control system according to claim 1, comprising a posture detecting unit for detecting direction of an operator'"'"'s line of sight, and said camera control unit can change image pickup direction of said stereo camera based on result of detection by said posture detecting unit.

3. A remote control system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said mobile object has camera driving units for changing image pickup direction of said stereo camera with respect to said mobile object, and image pickup direction can be changed by controlling said camera driving unit based on result of detection by the posture detecting unit.

4. A remote control system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said mobile object has a moving means for moving said mobile object, and said moving means can change image pickup direction of said stereo camera by controlling posture of said mobile object based on result of detection by said posture detecting unit.

5. A remote control system according to one of claims 1 to 3, wherein said display unit is a head-mounted display, and said posture detecting unit is mounted on said head-mounted display.

6. A remote control system according to claim 1 or 5, wherein said background images stored in said storage unit include position information relating to depth of a scene as visually recognized at the time of stereoscopic identification by the operator, and images can be visually recognized with relative depth with respect to the images photographed by said stereo camera when said background images are displayed on said display unit.

7. A remote control system according to one of claims 1 to 6, wherein said mobile object has a mobile object position detecting unit for acquiring position information of said mobile object, information relating to the remote control operation is stored in said storage unit, and information relating to said remote control operation is displayed on said display unit based on an output of said mobile object position detecting unit.

8. A remote control system according to one of claims 1 to 7, comprising a calculation unit for carrying out stereoscopic measurement on at least a part of an object to be photographed based on an image photographed by said stereo camera, and information corresponding to relative positional relation between the object to be measured as measured by said calculation unit and said stereo camera or said mobile object is displayed on said display unit so that images of said information can be stereoscopically recognized.

9. A remote control system according to one of claims 1 to 8, wherein said camera control unit corrects image pickup direction of said stereo camera to match the tilting of a helicopter body when the mobile object is tilted.