3D mapping with two orthogonal imaging views

• US 9,091,628 B2
• Filed: 12/21/2012
• Issued: 07/28/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/21/2012
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: L-3 Communications Security & Detection Systems, Inc. (Leidos Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: L-3 Communications Security & Detection Systems, Inc. (Leidos Holdings, Inc.)
• Inventors: Sezen, Kumsal Deniz, Bushnell-Fowler, Stephen
• Primary Examiner(s): Porta, David
• Assistant Examiner(s): VU, MINDY D
• Application Number:
  US13/724,397
• Publication Number:
  US 20140175298A1
• Time in Patent Office: 949 Days
• Field of Search: 250/360.1, 250/358.1, 250/390.06, 378/57, 378/9
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 23/083 the radiation being X-rays
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 23/09 the radiation being neutrons
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 5/22 Active interrogation, i.e. by irradiating objects or goods using external radiation sources, e.g. using gamma rays or cosmic rays
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 5/224 Multiple energy techniques using one type of radiation, e.g. X-rays of different energies

Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatuses, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for generating location and size measurements for small scattered objects in a large medium are disclosed.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a first radiation source;

a first detector configured to;

detect first radiation from the first radiation source during irradiation of a medium, wherein the medium includes one or more embedded objects;

a second radiation source oriented substantially orthogonally to the first radiation source;

a second detector located substantially orthogonally to the first detector configured to;

detect second radiation from the second radiation source during irradiation of the medium; and

one or more computers and one or more storage devices storing instructions that are operable, when executed by the one or more computers, to cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising;

receiving first data from the first detector, the first data associated with the detected first radiation, the receiving the first data including determining, based on the first data, a first angle associated with at least one of the one or more embedded objects;

receiving second data from the second detector, the second data associated with the detected second radiation, the receiving the second data including determining, based on the second data, a second angle associated with at least one of the one or more embedded objects; and

determining a location of at least one of the one or more embedded objects based on the detected first data and the detected second data, the location being relative to the medium, the determining the location including;

determining a distance between the first radiation source and the second radiation source;

determining a first coordinate based on a first ratio of (i) the distance between the first radiation source and the second radiation source and (ii) a first function of the first angle and the second angle; and

determining a second coordinate based on a second ratio of (i) the distance between the first radiation source and the second radiation source and a second function of the first angle and (ii) the first function of the first angle and the second angle.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the location comprises a first coordinate and a second coordinate, the first coordinate being associated with a first dimension and the second coordinate being associated with a second dimension, the first dimension and the second dimension being substantially orthogonal.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the location comprises a first coordinate and a second coordinate, the first coordinate and the second coordinate being Cartesian coordinates.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the first radiation source and the second radiation source produce X-rays.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the first radiation source and the second radiation source are neutron sources.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining a first magnification error based upon (i) a distance between the first detector and the first radiation source, (ii) a distance between the first detector and the at least one of the one or more embedded objects, and (iii) a size of the at least one of the one or more embedded objects; and

determining a second magnification error based upon (i) a distance between the second detector and the second radiation source, (ii) a distance between the second detector and the at least one of the one or more embedded objects, and (iii) a size of the at least one of the one or more embedded objects.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein a direction of emission of the radiation from the first radiation source is substantially orthogonal to a direction of emission of the radiation from the second radiation source.

8. A method comprising:

detecting, by a first detector, first radiation from a first radiation source during irradiation of a medium, wherein the medium includes one or more embedded objects;

receiving first data associated with the detected first radiation from the first detector, the receiving the first data including determining, based on the first data, a first angle associated with at least one of the one or more embedded objects;

detecting, by a second detector oriented substantially orthogonally to the first detector, second radiation from a second radiation source located substantially orthogonally to the first radiation source during irradiation of the medium;

receiving second data associated with the detected second radiation from the second detector, the receiving the second data including determining, based on the second data, a second angle associated with at least one of the one or more embedded objects; and

determining, by one or more computers, a location of at least one of the one or more embedded objects based on the received first data and the received second data, the location being relative to the medium, the determining the location including;

determining a distance between the first radiation source and the second radiation source;

determining a first coordinate based on a first ratio of (i) the distance between the first radiation source and the second radiation source and (ii) a first function of the first angle and the second angle; and

determining a second coordinate based on a second ratio of (i) the distance between the first radiation source and the second radiation source and a second function of the first angle and (ii) the first function of the first angle and the second angle.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the location comprises a first coordinate and a second coordinate, the first coordinate being associated with a first dimension and the second coordinate being associated with a second dimension, the first dimension and the second dimension being substantially orthogonal.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the location comprises a first coordinate and a second coordinate, the first coordinate and the second coordinate being Cartesian coordinates.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the first radiation source and the second radiation source produce X-rays.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the first radiation source and the second radiation source are neutron sources.

13. The method of claim 8, comprising:

determining a first magnification error based upon (i) a distance between the first detector and the first radiation source, (ii) a distance between the first detector and the at least one of the one or more embedded objects, and (iii) a size of the at least one of the one or more embedded objects; and

determining a second magnification error based upon (i) a distance between the second detector and the second radiation source, (ii) a distance between the second detector and the at least one of the one or more embedded objects, and (iii) a size of the at least one of the one or more embedded objects.

14. The method of claim 8, wherein a direction of emission of the radiation from the first radiation source is substantially orthogonal to a direction of emission of the radiation from the second radiation source.

15. A system comprising:

a first radiation source;

a first detector configured to;

detect first radiation from the first radiation source during irradiation of a medium, wherein the medium includes one or more embedded objects;

a second radiation source oriented substantially orthogonally to the first radiation source;

a second detector located substantially orthogonally to the first detector configured to;

detect second radiation from the second radiation source during irradiation of the medium; and

one or more computers and one or more storage devices storing instructions that are operable, when executed by the one or more computers, to cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising;

receiving first data from the first detector, the first data associated with the detected first radiation;

receiving second data from the second detector, the second data associated with the detected second radiation;

determining a location of at least one of the one or more embedded objects based on the detected first data and the detected second data, the location being relative to the medium;

determining a first magnification error based upon (i) a distance between the first detector and the first radiation source, (ii) a distance between the first detector and the at least one of the one or more embedded objects, and (iii) a size of the at least one of the one or more embedded objects; and

determining a second magnification error based upon (i) a distance between the second detector and the second radiation source, (ii) a distance between the second detector and the at least one of the one or more embedded objects, and (iii) a size of the at least one of the one or more embedded objects.