Method and apparatus for capturing and analyzing thermo-graphic images of a moving object

• US 7,622,715 B2
• Filed: 10/04/2005
• Issued: 11/24/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/11/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fluke Corporation (Fortive Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Fluke Corporation (Fortive Corp.)
• Inventors: Ignatowicz, Steven
• Primary Examiner(s): Porta; David P
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kim; Kiho
• Application Number:
  US11/243,258
• Publication Number:
  US 20060228100A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,512 Days
• Field of Search: 250/330, 250/334
• US Class Current: 250/330
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 5/80 Geometric correction
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/20 Analysis of motion motion estimation for coding, decoding, compressing or decompressing digital video signals H04N19/43, H04N19/51

Abstract

One aspect of the disclosure provides a method of correcting a distorted image including, capturing an image of a moving object, thereby obtaining a plurality of pixels that comprise the image; obtaining a speed of the moving object; obtaining a correction factor dependant on the speed of the object; and applying the correction factor to the plurality of pixels, thereby obtaining a corrected image.

Claims

1. A method of correcting a distorted thermal image, comprising:

capturing a first raw image of a moving object in a first position with a thermal imaging device, thereby obtaining a plurality of pixels that comprise the first raw image;

capturing a second raw image of the moving object in a second position with the thermal imaging device, wherein the second position generally varies in only one direction from the first position;

obtaining a speed of the moving object, wherein obtaining the speed of the moving object includes comparing the first raw image to the second raw image and analyzing the variation of the images with respect to a known frame rate of the thermal imaging device;

obtaining a response time for the thermal imaging device;

obtaining a correction factor to compensate for the distortion of the first raw image caused by the movement of the object, wherein the correction factor is dependent on the speed of the moving object and the response time of the thermal imaging device; and

applying the correction factor to the plurality of pixels, thereby obtaining a corrected image.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the second position is at a lower elevation than the first position.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first raw image and the second raw image are captured while the thermal imaging device remains stationary, thereby obtaining the first raw image and the second raw image within a stationary field of view of the thermal imaging device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein capturing the second raw image of the moving object thereby obtains a second plurality of pixels that comprise the second raw image.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein obtaining the speed of the moving object includes comparing the plurality of pixels to the second plurality of pixels and analyzing the variations between the plurality of pixels and the second plurality of pixels.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising selectively converting the gray pixels of each of the plurality of pixels and the second plurality of pixels to one of either black or white pixels, prior to obtaining the speed of the moving object.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the plurality of pixels and the second plurality of pixels are gray pixels.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the speed of the moving object is independent of the thermal imaging device.

9. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for performing steps, comprising:

(a) obtaining a first raw image of a moving object from a thermal imaging device, the first raw image comprising a plurality of pixels of the moving object in a first position;

(b) obtaining a second raw image from the thermal imaging device of the moving object in a second position;

(c) obtaining a speed of the moving object, wherein obtaining the speed of the moving object includes comparing the first raw image to the second raw image and analyzing the variation of the images with respect to a known frame rate of the thermal imaging device; and

(d) applying a correction factor to the plurality of pixels to obtain a corrected image of the moving object.

10. The medium of claim 9 further including the step of obtaining a response time of the thermal imaging device.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the correction factor is dependent on the speed of the moving object and the response time of the thermal imaging device.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the first raw image and the second raw image are obtained while the thermal imaging device remains stationary, thereby obtaining the first raw image and the second raw image within a stationary field of view of the thermal imaging device.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein obtaining the second raw image of the moving object thereby obtains a second plurality of pixels that comprise the second raw image.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein obtaining the speed of the moving object includes comparing the plurality of pixels to the second plurality of pixels and analyzing the variations between the plurality of pixels and the second plurality of pixels.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the plurality of pixels and the second plurality of pixels are gray pixels.

16. The medium of claim 15 further including the step of selectively converting the gray pixels of each of the plurality of pixels and the second plurality of pixels to one of either black or white pixels, prior to obtaining the speed of the moving object.

17. The method of claim 9, wherein the speed of the moving object is independent of the thermal imaging device.