Autonomous survey system (auto survey)

• US 6,338,023 B1
• Filed: 01/03/2000
• Issued: 01/08/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 01/03/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: The United States of America As Represented By The Secretary of Agriculture
• Original Assignee: The United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of The Army
• Inventors: Cheramie, Jami J., Gravley, John M., Alleman, Peter J., Bourgeois, Brian S., Martinez, Andrew B.
• Primary Examiner(s): McElheny, Jr., Donald E.
• Application Number:
  US09/476,332
• Time in Patent Office: 736 Days
• Field of Search: 702/5, 702/2, 702/150, 701/50, 367/15, 367/73, 367/88, 56/102.A, 180/168, 180/169
• US Class Current: 702/5
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 13/008 measuring depth of open water
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/86 Combinations of sonar systems with lidar systems; Combinations of sonar systems with systems not using wave reflection
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/89 for mapping or imaging

Abstract

The autonomous survey system (AutoSurvey) is used to automatically maximize area coverage with swath sensors and to minimize survey time while ensuring the collected data meets specified quality constraints. The autonomous survey system (AutoSurvey) evaluates the effects of the environment and system performance on the collected survey data by modulizing the data collection into a series of modules—data collection and error detection, data georectification, data quality validation, swath-edge fit, next-line way point generation, and the autopilot. All of these processes are implemented in near real-time, allowing unfettered survey progress. The data is applied directly between processes, providing operator independent system operation; the autosurvey system directly controls the survey vessel via the autopilot. Through the real-time data acquisition the system provides automation of the operator quality and coverage assessment tasks and also provides quantified data assessment. The operator is able to adjust the system operating parameters to compensate for ambient conditions and to determine subsequent navigation way points as a function of the specified survey criteria.

Claims

1. A system for swath surveying that provides a variable swath to automatically accommodate for variable survey environmental conditions, comprising:

means for establishing an outer perimeter of an area to be surveyed;

means for establishing a first survey track of a plurality of survey tracks;

means for establishing a survey vehicle'"'"'s terrestrial position;

means for piloting the survey vehicle on said first survey track;

means for acquiring swath data along a survey track;

means for determining swath data quality and rejecting data that does not meet specified constraints;

means for terminating the survey if no swath data is collected;

means for storing and displaying swath survey data, survey track, survey perimeter and, in real time, vehicle'"'"'s terrestrial position data;

means for analytic determination of a second and subsequent survey tracks by using the swath data collected from a previous track to adapt said second and subsequent survey tracks to the variable current environmental conditions of the survey;

means for piloting the survey vehicle on the second and subsequent survey tracks;

means for terminating the survey upon completion of said second and subsequent survey tracks; and

means for displaying the survey results.

2. A system, as in claim 1, wherein the means for establishing an outer perimeter of an area to be surveyed is accomplished by specifying a polygon that bounds a desired survey area, based on predetermined survey requirements.

3. A system, as in claim 2, wherein the polygon is specified by denoting the coordinates of the polygon'"'"'s vertices.

4. A system, as in claim 3, wherein the polygon, if not convex, is subdivided into a set of convex polygons to determine the specific area to be surveyed.

5. A system, as in claim 2, wherein the means for establishing a first survey track of a plurality of survey tracks is determined by selecting one of the sides of the specified polygon and defining a direction of travel.

6. A system, as in claim 1, wherein the means for positioning the survey vehicle is an electronic navigation system.

7. A system, as in claim 6, wherein the electronic navigation system is a global positioning system (GPS) satellite grouping.

8. A system, as in claim 6, wherein the electronic navigation system is an inertial navigation system.

9. A system, as in claim 1, wherein the means for piloting the survey vehicle on the first survey track is an autopilot.

10. A system, as in claim 1, wherein the means for piloting the survey vehicle on the first survey track is a manual pilot.

11. A system, as in claim 1, wherein the means for acquiring swath data within the survey perimeter along said first survey track is a swath survey system.

12. A system, as in claim 11, wherein the swath survey system is a swath laser ranging system.

13. A system, as in claim 11, wherein the swath survey system is a swath sonar system.

14. A system, as in claim 11, wherein the swath survey system is a swath radar ranging system.

15. A system, as in claim 1, wherein the means for determining swath data quality and rejecting data that does not meet specified constraints is a computer system for electronic evaluation using predetermined parameters.

16. A system, as in claim 1, wherein the means for storing and displaying swath data, survey track, survey perimeter and, in real time, vehicle'"'"'s terrestrial position is a computer system.

17. A system, as in claim 1, wherein the means for analytic determination of a second and subsequent survey tracks by using swath data collected from a previous track to adapt automatically to variable current environmental conditions of the survey is a computer system.

18. A system, as in claim 1, wherein the means for piloting the survey vehicle on a second and subsequent survey tracks is an autopilot.

19. A system, as in claim 1, wherein the means for piloting the survey vehicle on a second and subsequent survey tracks is a manual pilot.

20. A system, as in claim 1, wherein the means for terminating the survey when if no new swath data is collected within the survey perimeter is a computer.

21. A system, as in claim 1, wherein the means for displaying the survey data is a computer monitor.

22. A system, as in claim 1, wherein the means for displaying the survey data is an x-y plotter.

26. The system according to claim 1 wherein said means for analytic determination of said second and subsequent survey tracks comprises means for performing a center-of-mass technique for determining the second and subsequent survey tracks.

23. A computer system for analytic determination of a second and subsequent survey tracks of a plurality of survey tracks by using swath data collected from a previous track to provide a variable swath to automatically accommodate for variable survey environmental conditions, comprising:

a computer for computing,

(a) a shift factor based upon a predetermined percent coverage of swath data within a predetermined survey area;

(b) an initialization of a survey boundary to be a survey perimeter;

(c) determining swath edge data points furthest away from a survey vehicles position on both sides of the swath, using data collected from a previous track;

(d) applying a specific shift factor to the swath edge data points to determine shifted edge swath data points;

(e) crop the shifted edge data points using the survey boundary to determine only those shifted data points that lie within the survey boundary;

(f) if no swath data points have been collected within the survey boundary, terminate the survey;

(g) determine if an end game condition exists, if end game conditions exist execute end game processing to generate next survey track;

(h) determine next survey track that will follow a general trend of the shifted edge data points while smoothing short-term transients;

(i) determine a new survey boundary by using the next survey track as the new boundary edge; and

(j) repeat (c) through (i) until no new swath data is collected within the survey boundary, thereby terminating the survey; and

(k) display the survey results on a display.

24. A swath surveying that provides a variable swath to automatically accommodate for variable survey environmental conditions comprising the steps of:

establishing an outer perimeter of an area to be surveyed;

establishing a first survey track of a plurality of survey tracks;

establishing a survey vehicle'"'"'s terrestrial position;

piloting the survey vehicle on said first survey track;

acquiring swath data along a survey track;

determining swath data quality and rejecting data that does not meet specified constraints;

termining the survey if no swath data is collected;

storing and displaying swath survey data, survey track, survey perimeter and, in real time, vehicle'"'"'s terrestrial position data;

determining analytically a second and subsequent survey tracks by using the swath data collected from a previous track to adapt said second and subsequent survey tracks to the current variable environmental conditions;

piloting the survey vehicle on the second and subsequent survey tracks;

terminating the survey upon completion of said second and subsequent survey tracks; and

displaying the survey results on a display.

27. The system according to claim 24 wherein said determining of said second and subsequent survey tracks comprises performing a center-of-mass technique for determining the second and subsequent survey tracks.

25. A method for analytic determination of a second and subsequent survey tracks of a plurality of survey tracks by using swath data collected from a previous track to provide a variable swath to automatically accommodate for variable survey environmental conditions, comprising the steps of:

(a) determining a shift factor based upon a predetermined percent coverage of swath data within a predetermined survey area;

(b) initializing a survey boundary to be a survey perimeter;

(c) determining swath edge data points furthest away from a survey vehicles position on both sides of the swath, using data collected from a previous track;

(d) applying a specific shift factor to the swath edge data points to determine shifted edge swath data points;

(e) cropping the shifted edge data points using the survey boundary to determine only those shifted data points that lie within the survey boundary;

(f) terminating the survey if no swath data points have been collected within the survey boundary;

(g) determining if an end game condition exists, if end game conditions exist execute end game processing to generate next survey track;

(h) determining next survey track that will follow a general trend of the shifted edge data points while smoothing short-term transients;

(i) determining a new survey boundary by using the next survey track as the new boundary edge;

(j) repeating (c) through (i) until no new swath data is collected within the survey boundary, thereby terminating the survey; and

(k) displaying the survey results on a display.