High-resolution, continuous field-of-view (FOV), non-rotating imaging system

• US 7,773,121 B1
• Filed: 04/27/2007
• Issued: 08/10/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/03/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: The United States of America As Represented By The Secretary of Agriculture
• Original Assignee: United States Of America As Represented By The Administrator Of The National Aeronautics And Space Administration
• Inventors: Huntsberger, Terrance L., Padgett, Curtis W., Aghazarian, Hrand, Stirbl, Robert C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Vu; Ngoc-Yen T
• Application Number:
  US11/741,213
• Time in Patent Office: 1,201 Days
• Field of Search: 348/218.1
• US Class Current: 348/218.1
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19626 optical details, e.g. lenses, mirrors or multiple lenses
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/45 for generating image signals from two or more image sensors being of different type or operating in different modes, e.g. with a CMOS sensor for moving images in combination with a charge-coupled device [CCD] for still images
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/51 Housings
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/55 Optical parts specially adapted for electronic image sensors; Mounting thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/62 Control of parameters via user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/631 Graphical user interfaces [GUI] specially adapted for controlling image capture or setting capture parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/698 for achieving an enlarged field of view, e.g. panoramic image capture
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/181 for receiving images from a plurality of remote sources

Abstract

A high resolution CMOS imaging system especially suitable for use in a periscope head. The imaging system includes a sensor head for scene acquisition, and a control apparatus inclusive of distributed processors and software for device-control, data handling, and display. The sensor head encloses a combination of wide field-of-view CMOS imagers and narrow field-of-view CMOS imagers. Each bank of imagers is controlled by a dedicated processing module in order to handle information flow and image analysis of the outputs of the camera system. The imaging system also includes automated or manually controlled display system and software for providing an interactive graphical user interface (GUI) that displays a full 360-degree field of view and allows the user or automated ATR system to select regions for higher resolution inspection.

Claims

1. An imaging array use in a periscope head, comprising a plurality of cylindrical decks stacked end-to-end and including at least one deck having a cylindrical outer wall containing closed internal partitions defining a honeycomb of compartments, and a plurality of wide field-of-view imagers arranged back-to-back in said compartments and directed along offset focal paths, and at least one coaxially adjoining decks having a cylindrical outer wall containing closed internal partitions defining a honeycomb of compartments, and a plurality of narrow-field-of-view imagers directed along offset focal paths, wherein the imagers of adjoining stacked decks are offset from one another.

2. The imaging array use in a periscope head according to claim 1, wherein said wide field of view imagers are CMOS imagers.

3. The imaging array use in a periscope head according to claim 2, wherein said narrow field-of-view imagers are CMOS imagers.

4. The imaging array use in a periscope head according to claim 2, wherein said plurality of wide field-of-view CMOS imagers further comprise four wide field-of-view CMOS imagers

5. The imaging array use in a periscope bead according to claim 4, wherein said four wide field-of-view CMOS imagers further comprise four 92-degree full-field imagers.

6. The imaging array use in a periscope head according to claim 5, wherein said four wide field-of-view CMOS imagers are arranged back-to-back within corresponding compartments in said deck along 90 degree offset focal paths.

7. The imaging array use in a periscope head according to claim 1, wherein said at least one coaxially adjoining decks further comprise at least six adjoining decks.

8. The imaging array use in a periscope head according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of narrow-field-of-view imagers further comprise at least four narrow field of view imagers directed along offset focal paths.

9. A digital imaging system for use in a periscope head, comprising:

a sensor head for scene acquisition, said sensor head including a plurality of wide field-of-view imagers having greater then 90 degree fields of view and arranged with 90 degree offset focal paths arranged along a first plane, and a plurality of narrow field-of-view imagers having greater than 15 degree fields of view and arranged with at least 15 degree offset focal paths arranged along a second plane, said narrow field-of-view imagers being offset from said wide field-of-view imagers.

10. The digital imaging system for use in a periscope head according to claim 9, further comprising a control apparatus inclusive of a wide-field imaging processor module dedicated to said wide field-of-view imagers, at least one narrow-field imaging processor module dedicated to said narrow field-of-view imagers, a host processor, and a display system.

11. The digital imaging system for use in a periscope head according to claim 10, further comprising an automatic target recognition (ATR) processor connected to said host processor.

12. The digital imaging system for use in a periscope head according to claim 10, wherein said sensor head comprises a cylindrical enclosure having a plurality of cylindrical decks, and said wide field-of-view imagers are seated in one deck back-to-back with 90 degree offset focal paths, and said narrow field-of-view imagers are seated in other decks.

13. The digital imaging system for use in a periscope head according to claim 12, wherein said control apparatus includes software for providing an interactive graphical user interface (GUI) that displays a full 360-degree field of view and allows the user to select regions for higher resolution inspection.