Method and system for demodulating a digital pulse recognition signal in a light based positioning system using a Fourier transform

• US 8,436,896 B2
• Filed: 06/19/2012
• Issued: 05/07/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/26/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ABL IP Holding LLC (Acuity Brands, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Bytelight, Inc. (Acuity Brands, Inc.)
• Inventors: Staats, Peter, Sumner, Rob, Ryan, Daniel
• Primary Examiner(s): Wong, Allen
• Application Number:
  US13/526,779
• Publication Number:
  US 20130028609A1
• Time in Patent Office: 322 Days
• Field of Search: 348/61, 348/362, 382/103, 701/208, 708/400
• US Class Current: 348/61
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/16 using electromagnetic waves other than radio waves

Claims

1. A method for demodulating a modulated light signal in a light based positioning system, the method comprising:

receiving a modulated light signal at a device, wherein the modulated light signal transmits an arbitrary identifier of a light source;

recording the modulated light signal using a rolling shutter image sensor to create a raw image having alternating spaced apart stripes;

subtracting background information from the raw image to create an isolated image;

taking a Fourier transform of an image representative of the isolated image to calculate a Fourier transformed signal; and

determining the arbitrary identifier of the light source based on the Fourier transformed signal, wherein determining the arbitrary identifier of the light source comprises;

applying a filter to the Fourier transformed signal to create a filtered Fourier transformed signal;

removing a DC component of filtered Fourier Transformed signal to create a processed signal; and

selecting a peak frequency in the processed signal as the arbitrary identifier.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the image representative of the isolated image has a plurality of lines of pixels, wherein each pixel of each line is assigned a pixel value equal to the average pixel value of each of the pixels of the corresponding line of the isolated image.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein each of the plurality of lines of pixels runs horizontally.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein each of the plurality of lines of pixels runs vertically.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the filter comprises a low-pass filter to remove high frequency noise signals from the Fourier transformed signal.

6. The method claim 1, wherein the Fourier Transform comprises a two-dimensional Fast Fourier Transform (FFT).

7. The method claim 1, wherein the Fourier Transform comprises a one-dimensional Fast Fourier Transform (FFT).

8. An image detection apparatus for demodulating a modulated light signal in a light based positioning system, the image detection apparatus comprising:

an imaging sensor configured to receive a modulated light signal transmitting an arbitrary identifier of a light source and record the modulated light signal using a rolling shutter image sensor; and

a processor in communication with the imaging sensor configured to receive the recorded modulated light signal, create a raw image having alternating spaced apart stripes based on the recorded modulated light signal, subtract background information from the raw image to create an isolated image, take a Fourier transform of an image representative of the isolated image to calculate a Fourier transformed signal, and determine the arbitrary identifier of the light source based on the Fourier transformed signal, wherein the processor is configured to determine the arbitrary identifier of the light source by applying a filter to the Fourier transformed signal to create a filtered Fourier transformed signal, removing a DC component of filtered Fourier Transformed signal to create a processed signal, and selecting a peak frequency in the processed signal as the arbitrary identifier.

9. The image detection apparatus of claim 8, wherein the image representative of the isolated image has a plurality of lines of pixels, wherein each pixel of each line is assigned a pixel value equal to the average pixel value of each of the pixels of the corresponding line of the raw image.

10. The image detection apparatus of claim 9, wherein each of the plurality of lines of pixels runs horizontally.

11. The image detection apparatus of claim 9, wherein each of the plurality of lines of pixels runs vertically.

12. The image detection apparatus of claim 8, wherein the filter comprises a low-pass filter to remove high frequency noise signals from the Fourier transformed signal.

13. The image detection apparatus claim 8, wherein the Fourier Transform comprises a two-dimensional Fast Fourier Transform (FFT).

14. The image detection apparatus claim 8, wherein the Fourier Transform comprises a one-dimensional Fast Fourier Transform (FFT).