Self-Contained Holonomic Tracking Method and Apparatus for Non-Destructive Inspection
First Claim
1. A method for tracking a device that is coupled to a plurality of omni wheels, comprising:
- (a) converting rotation of each omni wheel into respective encoder data;
(b) computing an absolute angle representing an orientation of the device relative to a coordinate system of the surface based in part on said encoder data;
(c) computing relative changes in X and Y positions of the device relative to said coordinate system of the surface based in part on said encoder data; and
(d) computing an absolute position of the device relative to said coordinate system of the surface based in part on said computed absolute angle and said computed changes in X and Y positions.
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Abstract
A self-contained, holonomic motion tracking solution for supplementing the acquisition of inspection information on the surface of a structure, thereby enabling the real-time production of two-dimensional images from hand-held and automated scanning by holonomic-motion of non-destructive inspection (NDI) sensor units (e.g., NDI probes). The systems and methods disclosed enable precise tracking of the position and orientation of a holonomic-motion NDI sensor unit (hand-held or automated) and conversion of the acquired tracking data into encoder pulse signals for processing by a NDI scanning system.
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Citations
23 Claims
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1. A method for tracking a device that is coupled to a plurality of omni wheels, comprising:
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(a) converting rotation of each omni wheel into respective encoder data; (b) computing an absolute angle representing an orientation of the device relative to a coordinate system of the surface based in part on said encoder data; (c) computing relative changes in X and Y positions of the device relative to said coordinate system of the surface based in part on said encoder data; and (d) computing an absolute position of the device relative to said coordinate system of the surface based in part on said computed absolute angle and said computed changes in X and Y positions. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A device comprising:
- a frame;
a plurality of omni wheels rotatably coupled to said frame;
a plurality of rotational encoders respectively coupled to said plurality of omni wheels; and
an inspection unit connected to said frame. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
- a frame;
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15. An inspection system comprising a scanning device, a display device and a computer system, said scanning device and said display device being coupled to communicate with said computer system,
wherein said scanning device comprises: - a frame;
a plurality of omni wheels rotatably coupled to said frame;
a plurality of rotational encoders respectively coupled to said plurality of omni wheels for converting rotation of each omni wheel into respective encoder data; and
an inspection unit connected to said frame, andwherein said computer system is programmed to execute the following operations; (a) computing an absolute angle representing an orientation of the device relative to a coordinate system of the surface based in part on said encoder data; (b) computing relative changes in X and Y positions of the device relative to said coordinate system of the surface based in part on said encoder data; (c) computing an absolute position of the device relative to said coordinate system of the surface based in part on said computed absolute angle and said computed changes in X and Y positions; (d) controlling said inspection unit to acquire inspection data; (e) controlling said display device to display an image in which the inspection data is arranged based on the respective absolute angle and absolute position of the device when each inspection datum was acquired. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19)
- a frame;
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20. A tracking system comprising a movable device and a computer system, said movable device being coupled to communicate with said computer system,
wherein said movable device comprises: - a frame;
a plurality of omni wheels rotatably coupled to said frame; and
a plurality of rotational encoders respectively coupled to said plurality of omni wheels for converting rotation of each omni wheel into respective encoder data, andwherein said computer system is programmed to execute the following operations; (a) computing an absolute angle representing an orientation of the device relative to a coordinate system of the surface based in part on said encoder data; (b) computing relative changes in X and Y positions of the device relative to said coordinate system of the surface based in part on said encoder data; and (c) computing an absolute position of the device relative to said coordinate system of the surface based in part on said computed absolute angle and said computed changes in X and Y positions. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23)
- a frame;
Specification