Selecting objects within a vertical range of one another corresponding to pallets in an image scene

• US 8,938,126 B2
• Filed: 10/16/2012
• Issued: 01/20/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/19/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Crown Equipment Corporation
• Original Assignee: Crown Equipment Corporation
• Inventors: Holeva, Lee F., Elston, Edwin R., Seelinger, Michael J., Yoder, John-David S.
• Primary Examiner(s): MARIAM, DANIEL G
• Application Number:
  US13/652,640
• Publication Number:
  US 20130101230A1
• Time in Patent Office: 826 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 382/202
• CPC Class Codes: B66F 9/122 longitudinally movable
• CPC Class Codes: B66F 9/24 Electrical devices or systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/10016 Video; Image sequence
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/13 Edge detection
• 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

A method is provided for identifying one or more scored candidate objects that may correspond to one or more actual pallets in a gray scale image. The method may comprise: identifying, by a computer, a first plurality of scored candidate objects in the gray scale image; storing, by the computer, a starting list of the first plurality of scored candidate objects, wherein the starting list includes a respective record for each of the first plurality of scored candidate objects that includes a respective location of the scored candidate object within the gray scale image, and a respective composite object score that represents a likelihood that the scored candidate object corresponds to an actual pallet structure in the gray scale image; and removing from the starting list each of the first plurality of scored candidate objects which: a) is located within a predetermined vertical distance of a particular one of the first plurality of scored candidate objects; and b) has a respective composite score less than that of the particular one scored candidate object.

Claims

1. A method for identifying one or more scored candidate objects that may correspond to one or more actual pallets in a gray scale image, comprising:

identifying, by a computer, a first plurality of scored candidate objects in the gray scale image;

storing, by the computer, a starting list of the first plurality of scored candidate objects, wherein the starting list includes a respective record for each of the first plurality of scored candidate objects that includes a respective location of the scored candidate object within the gray scale image, and a respective composite object score that represents a likelihood that the scored candidate object corresponds to an actual pallet structure in the gray scale image; and

removing from the starting list each of the first plurality of scored candidate objects which;

a) is located within a predetermined vertical distance of a particular one of the first plurality of scored candidate objects; and

b) has a respective composite score less than that of the particular one scored candidate object.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein removing from the starting list comprises:

selecting, as the particular one scored candidate object, the scored candidate object having the maximum composite score from amongst the first plurality of scored candidate objects remaining in the starting list;

adding the particular one scored candidate object to a temporary sublist;

identifying all other of the first plurality of scored candidate objects remaining in the starting list that are located within the predetermined vertical distance of the respective location of the particular one scored candidate object;

deleting the particular one scored candidate object from the starting list, and

deleting from the starting list those identified scored candidate objects that are located within the predetermined vertical distance of the respective location of the particular one scored candidate object.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein, removing from the list is repeated for one or more different particular one scored candidate objects until the starting list is empty.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

creating, by the computer, an updated list for a second plurality of scored candidate objects by setting the updated list to be equal to the temporary sublist, wherein the updated list includes a respective record for each of the second plurality of scored candidate objects.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the respective record for each of the first plurality of scored candidate objects includes respective attributes of a center stringer associated with that scored candidate object, wherein the respective attributes include:

a respective x-coordinate value, X_LLC, of a respective lower left corner;

a respective x-coordinate value, x_LRC, of a respective lower right corner;

a respective orthogonal distance value, ρ

_BPBL, of an orthogonal distance from an origin to a line drawn through the respective lower left corner at a respective, predetermined angle φ

_BPBL; and

wherein the respective, predetermined angle φ

_BPBL is associated with a respective bottom pallet board line of that scored candidate object and is measured relative to a horizontal line.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the respective location of that scored candidate object has an x-coordinate, x_LC, estimated to be equal to

7. The method of claim 6, wherein another of the first plurality of scored candidate objects is located within the predetermined vertical distance of the respective location of the particular scored candidate object if the following inequality is satisfied:

ρ

_BPBL−

V_S≦

−

x_LC sin φ

_BPBL+y_LC cos φ

_BPBL≦

ρ

_BPBL+V_S

where;

ρ

_BPBL is the respective orthogonal distance value associated with the particular scored candidate object;

V_S is a predetermined number of pixels;

φ

_BPBL is the respective, predetermined angle associated with the particular scored candidate object;

x_LC is the respective x-coordinate of the respective location of the another of the first plurality of scored candidate objects; and

y_LC is the respective y-coordinate of the respective location of the another of the first plurality of scored candidate objects.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the predetermined number of pixels is about 50.

9. A system for identifying one or more scored candidate objects that may correspond to one or more actual pallets in a gray scale image, comprising:

a computer configured to execute instructions in an accessible memory;

a storage device coupled with the computer and configured to store a starting list of the first plurality of scored candidate objects, wherein the starting list includes a respective record for each of the first plurality of scored candidate objects that includes a respective location of the scored candidate object within the gray scale image, and a respective composite object score that represents a likelihood that the scored candidate object corresponds to an actual pallet structure in the gray scale image;

the computer when executing instructions stored in the accessible memory;

identifies a first plurality of scored candidate objects in the gray scale image; and

removes from the starting list each of the first plurality of scored candidate objects which;

a) is located within a predetermined vertical distance of a particular one of the first plurality of scored candidate objects; and

b) has a respective composite score less than that of the particular one scored candidate object.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein, to remove from the starting list each of the first plurality of scored candidate objects, the computer when executing instructions stored in the accessible memory performs a plurality of operations comprising:

selects, as the particular one scored candidate object, the scored candidate object having the maximum composite score from amongst the first plurality of scored candidate objects remaining in the starting list;

adds the particular one scored candidate object to a temporary sublist;

identifies all other of the first plurality of scored candidate objects remaining in the starting list that are located within the predetermined vertical distance of the respective location of the particular one scored candidate object;

deletes the particular one scored candidate object from the starting list, and

deletes from the starting list those identified scored candidate objects that are located within the predetermined vertical distance of the respective location of the particular one scored candidate object.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the computer when executing instructions stored in the accessible memory repeats the plurality of operations for one or more different particular one scored candidate objects until the starting list is empty.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the computer when executing instructions stored in the accessible memory:

creates an updated list for a second plurality of scored candidate objects by setting the updated list to be equal to the temporary sublist, wherein the updated list includes a respective record for each of the second plurality of scored candidate objects.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein the respective record for each of the first plurality of scored candidate objects includes respective attributes of a center stringer associated with that scored candidate object, wherein the respective attributes include:

a respective x-coordinate value, X_LLC, of a respective lower left corner;

a respective x-coordinate value, x_LRC, of a respective lower right corner;

a respective orthogonal distance value, ρ

_BPBL, of an orthogonal distance from an origin to a line drawn through the respective lower left corner at a respective, predetermined angle φ

_BPBL; and

wherein the respective, predetermined angle φ

_BPBL is associated with a respective bottom pallet board line of that scored candidate object and is measured relative to a horizontal line.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the respective location of that scored candidate object has an x-coordinate, x_LC, estimated to be equal to

15. The system of claim 14, wherein another of the first plurality of scored candidate objects is located within the predetermined vertical distance of the respective location of the particular scored candidate object if the following inequality is satisfied:

ρ

_BPBL−

V_S≦

−

x_LC sin φ

_BPBL+y_LC cos φ

_BPBL≦

ρ

_BPBL+V_S

where;

ρ

_BPBL is the respective orthogonal distance value associated with the particular scored candidate object;

V_S is a predetermined number of pixels;

φ

_BPBL is the respective, predetermined angle associated with the particular scored candidate object;

x_LC is the respective x-coordinate of the respective location of the another of the first plurality of scored candidate objects; and

y_LC is the respective y-coordinate of the respective location of the another of the first plurality of scored candidate objects.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the predetermined number of pixels is about 50.

17. A computer program product for identifying one or more scored candidate objects that may correspond to one or more actual pallets in a gray scale image, comprising:

a non-transitory computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith, the computer readable program code comprising;

computer readable program code configured to identify a first plurality of scored candidate objects in the gray scale image;

computer readable program code configured to maintain a starting list of the first plurality of scored candidate objects, wherein the starting list includes a respective record for each of the first plurality of scored candidate objects that includes a respective location of the scored candidate object within the gray scale image, and a respective composite object score that represents a likelihood that the scored candidate object corresponds to an actual pallet structure in the gray scale image; and

computer readable program code configured to remove from the starting list each of the first plurality of scored candidate objects which;

a) is located within a predetermined vertical distance of a particular one of the first plurality of scored candidate objects; and

b) has a respective composite score less than that of the particular one scored candidate object.

18. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the computer readable program code configured to remove from the starting list each of the first plurality of scored candidate objects, comprises:

computer readable program code configured to perform a plurality of operations comprising;

select, as the particular one scored candidate object, the scored candidate object having the maximum composite score from amongst the first plurality of scored candidate objects remaining in the starting list;

add the particular one scored candidate object to a temporary sublist;

identify all other of the first plurality of scored candidate objects remaining in the starting list that are located within the predetermined vertical distance of the respective location of the particular one scored candidate object;

delete the particular one scored candidate object from the starting list, and

delete from the starting list those identified scored candidate objects that are located within the predetermined vertical distance of the respective location of the particular one scored candidate object.

19. The computer program product of claim 18, wherein the computer readable program code configured to remove from the starting list each of the first plurality of scored candidate objects, comprises:

computer readable program code configured to repeat the plurality of operations for one or more different particular one scored candidate objects until the starting list is empty.

20. The computer program product of claim 19, further comprising:

computer readable program code configured to create an updated list for a second plurality of scored candidate objects by setting the updated list to be equal to the temporary sublist, wherein the updated list includes a respective record for each of the second plurality of scored candidate objects.

21. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the respective record for each of the first plurality of scored candidate objects includes respective attributes of a center stringer associated with that scored candidate object, wherein the respective attributes include:

a respective x-coordinate value, X_LLC, of a respective lower left corner;

a respective x-coordinate value, x_LRC, of a respective lower right corner;

a respective orthogonal distance value, ρ

_BPBL, of an orthogonal distance from an origin to a line drawn through the respective lower left corner at a respective, predetermined angle φ

_BPBL; and

wherein the respective, predetermined angle φ

_BPBL is associated with a respective bottom pallet board line of that scored candidate object and is measured relative to a horizontal line.

22. The computer program product of claim 21, wherein the respective location of that scored candidate object has an x-coordinate, x_LC, estimated to be equal to

23. The computer program product of claim 22, wherein another of the first plurality of scored candidate objects is located within the predetermined vertical distance of the respective location of the particular scored candidate object if the following inequality is satisfied:

ρ

_BPBL−

V_S≦

−

x_LC sin φ

_BPBL+y_LC cos φ

_BPBL≦

ρ

_BPBL+V_S

where;

ρ

_BPBL is the respective orthogonal distance value associated with the particular scored candidate object;

V_S is a predetermined number of pixels;

φ

_BPBL is the respective, predetermined angle associated with the particular scored candidate object;

x_LC is the respective x-coordinate of the respective location of the another of the first plurality of scored candidate objects; and

y_LC is the respective y-coordinate of the respective location of the another of the first plurality of scored candidate objects.

24. The computer program product of claim 23, wherein the predetermined number of pixels is about 50.