Position and orientation determination using movement data

• US 8,279,412 B2
• Filed: 12/17/2009
• Issued: 10/02/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/17/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Original Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Inventors: Motzer, William P., Georgeson, Gary E., Lea, Scott W., Hellenbrand, Peter J., Troy, James J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ratcliffe, Luke
• Application Number:
  US12/640,211
• Publication Number:
  US 20110149266A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,020 Days
• Field of Search: 356 301- 285, 35613901-1391, 356 301- 315, 356 401- 41, 356 501- 51, 356 6- 22, 356/28
• US Class Current: 356/4.01
• CPC Class Codes: B64F 5/00 Designing, manufacturing, assembling, cleaning, maintaining or repairing aircraft, not otherwise provided for; Handling, transporting, testing or inspecting aircraft components, not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/16 by integrating acceleration or speed, i.e. inertial navigation
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 25/005 initial alignment, calibration or starting-up of inertial devices
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/16 using electromagnetic waves other than radio waves

Abstract

Position determining systems and methods are provided. A particular portable device includes a calibration component to communicate with a local positioning system to determine an initial position and orientation of the portable device within a local coordinate system associated with a target structure. The portable device also includes at least one movement sensor to detect movement of the portable device. The portable device further includes a processor to determine a measured position and orientation of the portable device based on the initial position and orientation of the portable device within the local coordinate system and based on the detected movement of the portable device.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

initializing a portable device by storing position and orientation data in a memory of the portable device, the position and orientation data indicating a position and orientation of the portable device within a local coordinate system associated with a target structure;

detecting movement of the portable device;

determining movement data based on the detected movement;

determining a spatial relationship of the portable device relative to the target structure based at least partially on the position and orientation data and the movement data;

when the spatial relationship is within a first threshold distance of a target component, activating a first indicator at the portable device; and

when the spatial relationship is within a second threshold distance of the target component, activating a second indicator at the portable device, wherein the first threshold distance is different than the second threshold distance, and wherein the first indicator is distinct from the second indicator.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein initializing the portable device includes receiving target component data specifying a location in the local coordinate system of at least one target component of the target structure.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising accessing a memory storing target component data specifying locations of components of the target structure in the local coordinate system, wherein the target component data specifies locations of the components of the target structure based on one or more electronic representations of the target structure.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein determining the spatial relationship of the portable device relative to the target structure includes determining a position and orientation of the portable device relative to one or more of the components of the target structure.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising selecting the first threshold distance based on an identification of the target component.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first indicator and the second indicator indicates a direction to the target component.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the target structure is one of an aircraft, a space craft, a water craft, and a land craft.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving input at the portable device that selects a particular position of the portable device; and

searching component data to identify one or more components of the target structure having a specified spatial relationship to the particular position.

9. A portable device, comprising:

a calibration component to communicate with a local positioning system to determine an initial position and orientation of the portable device within a local coordinate system associated with a target structure;

at least one movement sensor to detect movement of the portable device; and

a processor to;

determine a spatial relationship of the portable device relative to the target structure based on the initial position and orientation of the portable device within the local coordinate system and the detected movement of the portable device; and

activate one of a first indicator and a second indicator at the portable device based on the spatial relationship, wherein the first indicator is activated when the spatial relationship is within a first threshold distance of the target structure, and wherein the second indicator is activated when the spatial relationship is within a second threshold distance of the target structure, wherein the first threshold distance is different than the second threshold distance, and wherein the first indicator is distinct from the second indicator.

10. The portable device of claim 9, further comprising a memory accessible to the processor, the memory storing target component data specifying locations of one or more components of the target structure in the local coordinate system, wherein the processor further determines the spatial relationship of the portable device relative to the target structure based on a second spatial relationship of the portable device relative to at least one target component of the one or more components of the target structure, wherein the processor determines the second spatial relationship based on the initial position and orientation of the portable device within the local coordinate system, the detected movement of the portable device, and the target component data.

11. The portable device of claim 10, further comprising an input device to receive an input specifying the at least one target component of the one or more components of the target structure.

12. The portable device of claim 10, further comprising a pointer adapted to point to a location of the at least one target component.

13. The portable device of claim 9, wherein the processor determines the spatial relationship of the portable device when the portable device is not in a line of sight to the local positioning system.

14. The portable device of claim 9, further comprising a sensor to capture data at a position within the target structure, wherein the processor stores the captured data with data descriptive of the position.

15. The portable device of claim 14, further comprising an interface to send the data descriptive of the position and the captured data to a remote device.

16. The portable device of claim 9, wherein the at least one movement sensor comprises one or more inertial sensors.

20. The portable device of claim 11, wherein at least one of the first threshold distance and the second threshold distance is determined based on at least one of a size of the at least one target component and a location of the at least one target component.

17. A positioning system, comprising:

a plurality of local position detectors to determine a position and orientation of a location of interest on a target structure within a first coordinate system;

a processor to determine a second coordinate system of the target structure based on the position and orientation of the target structure in the first coordinate system and based on at least a portion of one or more electronic representations of the target structure; and

a portable device including;

a memory to store an initial position and orientation of the portable device within the second coordinate system;

at least one movement sensor to detect movement of the portable device; and

a portable device processor to;

determine a measured position and orientation of the portable device within the target structure based on the initial position and orientation of the portable device within the second coordinate system and based on the detected movement of the portable device;

determine a spatial relationship of the portable device relative to the target structure based at least partially on the measured position and orientation of the portable device and the detected movement of the portable device;

activate a first indicator at the portable device when the spatial relationship is within a first threshold distance of the target structure; and

activate a second indicator when the spatial relationship is within a second threshold distance of the target structure that is different than the first threshold distance.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the plurality of local position detectors comprise laser devices at known locations within the first coordinate system, the laser devices adapted to take measurements of a position and an orientation of the target structure within the first coordinate system.

19. The system of claim 18, further comprising a calibration frame including a plurality of target locations, wherein measurement data from the laser devices is used to determine the initial position and orientation of the portable device based on a position of the calibration frame.