CALIBRATION APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR 3D POSITION/DIRECTION ESTIMATION SYSTEM

• US 20130253869A1
• Filed: 11/01/2012
• Published: 09/26/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/26/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: KIM, Sang Hyun, LEE, Hyong Euk, CHOI, Chang Kyu
• Granted Patent: US 9,557,190 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 702/94
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 15/002 Active optical surveying means optical plumbing G01C15/105
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 25/00 Manufacturing, calibrating, cleaning, or repairing instruments or devices referred to in the other groups of this subclass testing, calibrating or compensating compasses G01C17/38
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/021 Calibration, monitoring or correction G01S5/0252 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/04 Position of source determined by a plurality of spaced direction-finders
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/16 using electromagnetic waves other than radio waves

Abstract

Provided is a calibration apparatus and method of a three-dimensional (3D) position and direction estimation system. The calibration apparatus may receive inertia information and intensity information during a predetermined period of time, may calculate distances between a transmitter and the respective receivers, and may calibrate a signal attenuation characteristic of each receiver using the distances between the transmitter and the respective receivers.

Claims

1. A calibration apparatus for calibrating a signal attenuation characteristic in a three-dimensional (3D) position and direction estimation system, the calibration apparatus comprising:

an information selector to receive intensity information of a signal measured by each receiver during a predetermined period of time, to receive inertia information from a remote device during the same predetermined period of time, to select strongest intensity information for each receiver, and to verify inertia information of when the strongest intensity information is received;

an angle calculator, using at least one processor, to calculate angles between a vector of a transmitter and vectors of the respective receivers based on the inertia information verified for each receiver; and

a position calculator to calculate a 3D position of the remote device using a triangulation scheme based on the angles between the vector of the transmitter and the vectors of the respective receivers.

2. The calibration apparatus of claim 1, wherein the signal received by each receiver during the predetermined period of time is a signal that is transmitted by the transmitter during the predetermined period of time while being rotated horizontally or vertically based on a fixed point.

3. The calibration apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a distance calculator to calculate distances between the transmitter and the respective receivers; and

a calibrator to calibrate the signal attenuation characteristic of each receiver based on the strongest intensity information of each receiver and the distances between the transmitter and the respective receivers.

4. The calibration apparatus of claim 3, wherein the calibrator calibrates the signal attenuation characteristic of each receiver based on the strongest intensity information of each receiver and information about the distances between the transmitter and the respective receivers that are measured at least twice at different positions.

5. The calibration apparatus of claim 3, further comprising:

a posture calculator to calculate a posture of the remote device of when the strongest intensity information for each receiver is received, based on inertia information of when the strongest intensity information for each receiver is received,

wherein when calibrating the signal attenuation characteristic of each receiver, the calibrator uses a signal attenuation characteristic that varies based on an angle, using the posture of the remote device.

6. The calibration apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least three receivers are provided.

8. The calibration apparatus of claim 1, wherein the remote device comprises an inertia sensor to measure the inertia information, and comprises either the transmitter or the receivers.

9. The calibration apparatus of claim 1, wherein the intensity information comprises an intensity value of an optical signal that is emitted at a predetermined wavelength, or magnitude of an electromagnetic field.

10. The calibration apparatus of claim 1, wherein the inertia information comprises at least one of motion acceleration of three axes, gravity acceleration of the three axes, and angular speed of the three axes that are measured using an inertia sensor.

7. A calibration apparatus for calibrating a signal attenuation characteristic in a three-dimensional (3D) position and direction estimation system, the calibration apparatus comprising:

an information selector to receive intensity information of a signal measured by each receiver during a predetermined period of time, to receive inertia information from a remote device during the same predetermined period of time, to select strongest intensity information for each receiver, and to verify inertia information of when the strongest intensity information is received;

an angle calculator, using at least one processor, to calculate angles between a vector of a first transmitter and vectors of the respective receivers based on the inertia information verified for each receiver and between a vector of a second transmitter and vectors of the respective receivers based on the inertia information verified for each receiver; and

a position calculator to calculate a 3D position of the remote device using a triangulation scheme based on the angles between the first vector of the transmitter and the vectors of the respective receivers and the second vector of the transmitter and the vectors of the respective receivers.

11. A calibration method for calibrating a signal attenuation characteristic in a calibration apparatus of a three-dimensional (3D) position and direction estimation system, the method comprising:

receiving intensity information of a signal measured by each receiver during a predetermined period of time, and receiving inertia information from a remote device during the same predetermined period of time;

selecting strongest intensity information for each receiver;

verifying inertia information of when the strongest intensity information is received;

calculating, using at least one processor, angles between a vector of a transmitter and vectors of the respective receivers based on the inertia information verified for each receiver; and

calculating a 3D position of the remote device using a triangulation scheme based on the angles between the vectors.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the signal received by each receiver during the predetermined period of time is a signal that is transmitted by the transmitter during the predetermined period of time while being rotated horizontally or vertically based on a fixed point.

13. The method of claim 11, after calculating the 3D position of the remote device, further comprising:

calculating distances between the transmitter and the respective receivers; and

calibrating the signal attenuation characteristic of each receiver based on the strongest intensity information of each receiver and the distances between the transmitter and the respective receivers.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the calibrating comprises calibrating the signal attenuation characteristic of each receiver based on the strongest intensity information of each receiver and information about the distances between the transmitter and the respective receivers that are measured at least twice at different positions.

15. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

calculating a posture of the remote device of when the strongest intensity information for each receiver is received, based on inertia information of when the strongest intensity information for each receiver is received,

wherein the calibrating comprises using a signal attenuation characteristic that varies based on an angle using the posture of the remote device, when calibrating the signal attenuation characteristic of each receiver.

23. At least one non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer readable instructions that control at least one processor to implement the method of claim 11.

16. A system for estimating a three-dimensional (3D) position and a direction, the system comprising:

a transmission apparatus comprising at least one transmitter to transmit a signal for intensity measurement;

a reception apparatus comprising at least three receivers to receive the signal and to measure intensity of the signal, and to output intensity information;

a remote device comprising an inertia sensor to measure inertia information, and comprising one of the transmission apparatus and the reception apparatus; and

a calibration apparatus to receive the inertia information and the intensity information during a predetermined period of time, to calculate, using at least one processor, distances between the at least one transmitter and the at least three receivers, and to calibrate a signal attenuation characteristic of each receiver based on the distances between the at least one transmitter and the at least three receivers.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the calibration apparatus comprises:

an information selector to receive intensity information of a signal measured by each receiver during a predetermined period of time, to receive inertia information from the remote device during the same period of time, to select strongest intensity information for each receiver, and to verify inertia information of when the strongest intensity information is received;

an angle calculator to calculate angles between a vector of the at least one transmitter and vectors of the at least three receiver based on the inertia information verified for each receiver;

a position calculator to calculate a 3D position of the remote device using a triangulation scheme based on the angles between the vectors;

a distance calculator to calculate distances between the at least one transmitter and the at least three receivers; and

a calibrator to calibrate the signal attenuation characteristic of each receiver based on the strongest intensity information of each three receiver and the calculated distances between the at least one transmitter and the at least three receivers.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the signal received by each receiver during the predetermined period of time is a signal that is transmitted by the at least one transmitter during the predetermined period of time while being rotated horizontally or vertically based on a fixed point.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the calibrator calibrates the signal attenuation characteristic of each receiver based on the strongest intensity information of each receiver and information about the distances between the at least one transmitter and the at least three receivers that are measured at least twice at different positions.

20. The system of claim 17, further comprising:

a posture calculator to calculate a posture of the remote device of when the strongest intensity information for each receiver is received, based on inertia information of when the strongest intensity information for each receiver is received,

wherein when calibrating the signal attenuation characteristic of each receiver, the calibrator uses a signal attenuation characteristic that varies based on an angle, using the posture of the remote device.

21. The system of claim 16, wherein the at least three receivers are provided.

22. The system of claim 16, wherein at least two transmitters that direct different directions are provided.

24. A calibration method for calibrating a signal attenuation characteristic in a calibration apparatus of a three-dimensional (3D) position and direction estimation system, the method comprising:

receiving intensity information of a signal measured by each receiver during a predetermined period of time, and receiving inertia information from a remote device during the same predetermined period of time;

selecting strongest intensity information for each receiver;

verifying inertia information of when the strongest intensity information is received;

calculating, using at least one processor, angles between a vector of a first transmitter and vectors of the respective receivers based on the inertia information verified for each receiver;

calculating, using at least one processor, angles between a vector of a second transmitter and vectors of the respective receivers based on the inertia information verified for each receiver; and

calculating a 3D position of the remote device using a triangulation scheme based on the angles between the vectors.

25. At least one non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer readable instructions that control at least one processor to implement the method of claim 24.