Method of creating a virtual window

• US 7,262,789 B2
• Filed: 01/23/2003
• Issued: 08/28/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 01/23/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Blackhawk Imaging LLC
• Original Assignee: Tenebraex Corporation
• Inventors: Jones, Peter W. J.
• Primary Examiner(s): An; Shawn S.
• Application Number:
  US10/350,900
• Publication Number:
  US 20030179288A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,678 Days
• Field of Search: 348/36, 348/39, 348/48, 348/43, 348/37, 348/207, 348/143, 382/154, 382/181, 382/194, 382/199
• US Class Current: 348/36
• CPC Class Codes: F41H 11/00 Defence installations; Defence devices constructional aspects see Section E, e.g. air-raid shelters E04H9/04; protective arrangements for buildings E04B1/92; extinguishing or preventing the spread of fire from, incendiary bombs A62C3/06; dynamic armour F41H5/007; ballistically deployed systems for restraining persons or animals F41H13/0006; electronic countermeasures G01S
• CPC Class Codes: F41H 13/00 Means of attack or defence not otherwise provided for details of radar or sonar systems G01S7/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1601 Constructional details related to the housing of computer displays, e.g. of CRT monitors, of flat displays constructional details related to flat displays integrated in a portable computer, e.g. laptop, handheld computer G06F1/1637; constructional details related to television receivers H04N5/64
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 17/002 for television cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 17/004 for digital television systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/698 for achieving an enlarged field of view, e.g. panoramic image capture
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/2628 Alteration of picture size, shape, position or orientation, e.g. zooming, rotation, rolling, perspective, translation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49002 Electrical device making

Abstract

The systems and methods described herein include, among other things, a technique for calibrating the outputs of multiple sensors, such as CCD devices, that have overlapping fields of view and mapping the pixels of those outputs to the pixels of a display screen by means of a lookup table so that a user can see a selected field of view within the larger fields of view that are seen by the sensors.

Claims

1. A method for manufacturing a panoramic image sensor, comprising the steps of:

providing a sensor body,

disposing on the surface of the sensor body a plurality of imaging sensors, each having a field of view,

presenting a pattern to the plurality of imaging sensors,

allowing said sensors to capture an image of the pattern appearing in its respective field of view, and

processing said captured images to identify overlapping regions within the fields of view of a plurality of sensors to thereby calibrate the plurality of image sensors to generate a panoramic image,

wherein calibrating includes generating a lookup table having information of which sensor pixel of which sensor “

sees”

a portion of the pattern at a time.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein providing a sensor body includes providing a sensor body having a substantially convex exterior surface.

3. A method according to claim 1, wherein providing a sensor body includes providing a sensor body having a substantially hemi-decahedron exterior surface.

4. A method according to claim 1, wherein disposing a plurality of imaging sensors on the sensor body includes arranging the sensors across the surface to capture a hemispherical region within the field of view of the plural sensors.

5. A method according to claim 1, wherein presenting a pattern includes tracing a pattern with a light source across a surface.

6. A method according to claim 1, wherein presenting a pattern includes forming an image of a pattern on an interior surface of a hemispherical surface.

7. A method according to claim 1, wherein presenting a pattern includes displaying an image of a grid to the sensors.

8. A method according to claim 1, wherein the lookup table includes information of which pixel of which sensor responds to a light source at a defined point on the pattern.

9. A method according to claim 8, wherein calibrating includes selecting between two or more sensors that each respond to the light source at a defined point on the pattern.

10. A method according to claim 1, wherein the pattern is a grid pattern.

11. A method according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of image sensors are CCD image sensors.

12. Apparatus for calibrating a panoramic image sensor, comprising:

a sensor body,

a plurality of imaging sensors, each having a plurality of pixels and being disposed on the surface of the sensor body and having respective fields of view,

a pattern disposed within-the fields of view of at least two sensors for allowing said at least two sensors to capture an image of the pattern appearing in its respective field of view, and

a calibration mechanism for processing said captured images to identify overlapping regions within the fields of view of a plurality of sensors and for generating a look up table correlating pixels in a panoramic image with pixels in said plurality of sensors, wherein the lookup table includes information of which sensor pixel of which sensor “

sees”

a portion of the pattern at a time.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the sensor body has a substantially convex exterior surface.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the sensors include CCD devices mounted to the convex exterior surface.

15. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the sensor body has a substantially hemi-decahedron exterior surface.

16. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the plurality of imaging sensors disposed on the surface of the sensor body are arranged across the surface to capture a hemispherical region within the field of view of the plural sensors.

17. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the pattern is a pattern traced with a light source across a surface.

18. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the pattern is an image of a pattern on an interior surface of a hemi-spherical surface.

19. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the pattern is an image of a grid displayed to the sensors.

20. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the pattern is a grid pattern.

21. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the lookup table includes information of which pixel of which sensor responds to a light source at a defined point on the pattern.

22. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the calibration mechanism selects between two or more sensors that each respond to the light source at a defined point on the pattern.

23. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the plurality of image sensors are CCD image sensors.

24. A method for manufacturing a panoramic image sensor, comprising the steps of:

providing a sensor body,

disposing on the surface of the sensor body a plurality of imaging sensors, each having a field of view,

presenting a pattern to the plurality of imaging sensors, wherein presenting a pattern includes tracing a pattern with a light source across a surface,

allowing said sensors to capture an image of the pattern appearing in its respective field of view, and

processing said captured images to identify overlapping regions within the fields of view of a plurality of sensors to thereby calibrate the plurality of image sensors to generate a panoramic image, wherein calibrating includes generating a lookup table with the information of which pixel of which sensor responds to the light source at a defined point on the pattern.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein calibrating includes selecting between two or more sensors that each respond to the light source at a defined point on the pattern.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein providing a sensor body includes providing a sensor body having at least one of a substantially convex and a substantially hemi-decahedron exterior surface.

27. The method of claim 24, wherein disposing a plurality of imaging sensors on the sensor body includes arranging the sensors across the surface to capture a hemispherical region within the field of view of the plural sensors.

28. The method of claim 24, wherein the pattern is a grid pattern.

29. The method of claim 24, wherein the plurality of image sensors are CCD image sensors.

30. An apparatus for calibrating a panoramic image sensor, comprising:

a sensor body,

a plurality of imaging sensors, each having a plurality of pixels and being disposed on the surface of the sensor body and having respective fields of view,

a pattern disposed within-the fields of view of at least two sensors for allowing said at least two sensors to capture an image of the pattern appearing in its respective field of view, and

a calibration mechanism for processing said captured images to identify overlapping regions within the fields of view of a plurality of sensors and for generating a look up table correlating pixels in a panoramic image with pixels in said plurality of sensors, wherein the lookup table includes information of which pixel of which sensor responds to a light source at a defined point on the pattern.

31. The apparatus of claim 30, wherein the calibration mechanism selects between two or more sensors that each respond to the light source at a defined point on the pattern.

32. The apparatus of claim 30, wherein the sensor body has at least one of a substantially convex and a substantially hemi-decahedron exterior surface.

33. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein the sensors include CCD devices mounted to the exterior surface.

34. The apparatus of claim 30, wherein the plurality of imaging sensors disposed on the surface of the sensor body are arranged across the surface to capture a hemispherical region within the field of view of the plural sensors.

35. The apparatus of claim 30, wherein the pattern is a pattern traced with the light source across a surface.

36. The apparatus of claim 30, wherein the pattern is an image of a pattern on an interior surface of a hemi-spherical surface.

37. The apparatus of claim 30, wherein the pattern is an image of a grid displayed to the sensors.

38. The apparatus of claim 30, wherein the pattern is a grid pattern.

39. The apparatus of claim 30, wherein the plurality of image sensors are CCD image sensors.