Automatic obstacle location mapping

• US 9,213,905 B2
• Filed: 03/15/2012
• Issued: 12/15/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/25/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: PTx Trimble LLC
• Original Assignee: Trimble Navigation Limited (Trimble Inc.)
• Inventors: Lange, Arthur F., Cash, Michael, Lindores, Robert J., Weisenburger, Shawn D., France, Peter G., Janky, James M., Bringuel, Martin C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Le, Miranda
• Application Number:
  US13/421,659
• Publication Number:
  US 20120237083A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,370 Days
• Field of Search: 707/921, 707/999.003, 707/724, 702/95, 382/103
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A01B 79/005 Precision agriculture
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/29 Geographical information databases
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/58 Recognition of moving objects or obstacles, e.g. vehicles or pedestrians; Recognition of traffic objects, e.g. traffic signs, traffic lights or roads
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/68 Food, e.g. fruit or vegetables

Abstract

A method of automatic obstacle location mapping comprises receiving an indication of a feature to be identified in a defined area. An instance of the feature is found within an image. A report is then generated conveying the location of said feature.

Claims

1. A method of automatically mapping the location of an obstacle comprising:

receiving an indication of a feature to be identified in a defined area;

finding an instance of said feature within an image of said defined area, wherein said image of defined area is generated after said receiving said indication of said feature;

identifying a reference feature within said image, wherein said reference feature is a feature characteristic that is common to both said image of said defined area and an identified image from a database;

accessing said identified image which at least in part shows a portion of said defined area;

identifying said reference feature in said identified image;

determining geographic coordinates of said feature relative to said reference feature in said identified image;

determining a set of geographic coordinates of said reference feature;

validating a level of accuracy associated with said set of geographic coordinates, wherein said validating comprises;

validating a presence of Z-coordinate information in said set of geographic coordinates; and

validating whether or not said accuracy associated with said set of geographic coordinates of said reference feature in said image of said defined area is higher than an accuracy of a set of geographic coordinates of said reference feature in said identified image;

determining geographic coordinates of said feature relative to said reference feature, wherein said feature comprises an object within said defined area, and wherein said object comprises said obstacle; and

generating a report conveying the location of said feature.

2. The method recited in claim 1, further comprising:

generating a representation showing said location of said feature and wherein said representation is selected from the group consisting of a map of said defined area, a picture of said defined area, a moving image of said defined area, and a real-time representation of said defined area; and

conveying said representation via said report.

3. The method recited in claim 1, further comprising:

sending said geographic coordinates of said feature to a device located at said defined area.

4. The method recited in claim 1, further comprising:

converting the geographic coordinates of said feature to a coordinate system usable by said device located at said defined area.

5. The method recited in claim 1, further comprising:

receiving with said image, a set of coordinates conveying a position of an image capture device which created said image.

6. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having computer readable instructions stored thereon which, when executed, cause a processor to perform a method of automatically mapping the location of an obstacle, said method comprising:

receiving an indication of a feature to be identified in a defined area;

finding an instance of said feature within an image of said defined area, wherein said image of defined area is generated after said receiving said indication of said feature;

identifying a reference feature within said image, wherein said reference feature is a feature characteristic that is common to both said image of said defined area and an identified image from a database;

accessing said identified image which at least in part shows a portion of said defined area;

identifying said reference feature in said identified image;

determining said geographic coordinates of said feature relative to said reference feature in said identified image;

determining a set of geographic coordinates of said reference feature;

validating a level of accuracy associated with said set of geographic coordinates, wherein said validating comprises;

validating a presence of Z-coordinate information in said set of geographic coordinates; and

validating whether or not said accuracy associated with said set of geographic coordinates of said reference feature in said image of said defined area is higher than an accuracy of a set of geographic coordinates of said reference feature in said identified image, wherein said identified image correlates to said image of said defined area;

determining geographic coordinates of said feature relative to said reference feature, wherein said feature comprises an object within said defined area, and wherein said object comprises said obstacle; and

generating a report conveying the location of said feature.

7. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium recited in claim 6, wherein said method further comprises:

generating a representation showing said location of said feature and wherein said representation is selected from the group consisting of a map of said defined area, a picture of said defined area, a moving image of said defined area, and a real-time representation of said defined area; and

conveying said representation via said report.

8. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium recited in claim 6, wherein said method further comprises:

sending said geographic coordinates of said feature to a device located at said defined area.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium recited in claim 6, wherein said method further comprises:

converting said geographic coordinates of said feature to a coordinate system usable by said device located at said defined area.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium recited in claim 6, wherein said method further comprises:

receiving with said image, a set of coordinates conveying a position of an image capture device which created said image.

11. An automatic object mapping system comprising:

a feature indicator receiver configured for receiving an indication of a feature to be identified in a defined area, wherein said feature comprises an object;

an image receiver configured for, after said receiving said indication of said feature to be identified in said defined area, receiving an image for use in determining the location of said object in said defined area, said image comprising digital image information of said defined area, wherein said image is generated after said receiving said indication of said feature;

an image identification processor configured for identifying a second image from an image database, wherein said second image correlates to said image of said defined area;

a registration comparer configured for comparing georeferenced registration information received in conjunction with said image to existing georeferenced registration information associated with said second image to determine which is more accurate, wherein said level of accuracy is determined based upon comparing accuracy of sources of said georeferenced registration information;

a registration updater configured for updating said existing georeferenced registration information with said received georeferenced registration information if said georeferenced registration information for said image is determined to be more accurate than said existing georeferenced registration information for said second image;

a communicative coupling with a geographic location information system;

a reference feature determiner configured for determining a reference feature common to both said second image and said image;

a feature locator configured for accessing said geographic location information system to identify and obtain geographic location information related to said common reference feature;

an accuracy validator configured for validating a level of accuracy associated with said geographic location information, wherein said validating comprises;

validating a presence of Z-coordinate information in said geographic location information; and

validating whether or not said accuracy associated with said geographic location information of said reference feature in said image of said defined area is higher than an accuracy of geographic location information of said reference feature in said second image; and

an output engine configured to generate a report comprising a map which conveys the location of said object, wherein said output engine comprises;

a feature identifier configured to analyze said image of said defined area and to identify said object based upon at least one pre-defined characteristic of a feature selected to be identified in said defined area, wherein said object comprises an obstacle.

12. The automatic object mapping system of claim 11, further comprising:

a provenance checker for checking for and determining a provenance of accuracy for a georeferenced position fix.

13. The automatic object mapping system of claim 11, further comprising:

a coordinate system transformer configured for transforming geographic location information related to a common reference feature into a desired coordinate system.

14. A method of automatic obstacle location mapping, said method comprising:

coupling an obstacle detecting apparatus with an implement;

determining, using said obstacle detecting apparatus, that said implement has struck an object, wherein said determining comprises;

using a sensing device of said obstacle detecting apparatus to determine that said implement has struck said object, said sensing device selected from the group consisting of an accelerometer, a strain gauge, a load cell, and a gyroscope, wherein said object is in a defined area;

finding an instance of said object within an image of said defined area in response to said determining that said implement has struck said object, wherein said image is generated after said determining that said implement has struck said object;

sending an indication of the location of said object via a wide-area farming information collection and dissemination network;

receiving a report via said wide-area farming information collection and dissemination network indicating the location of said object on a representation of a defined area where implement has struck said object;

validating a level of accuracy associated with a determined set of geographic coordinates corresponding to a location of said object within said image, wherein said validating comprises;

validating a presence of Z-coordinate information in said set of geographic coordinates; and

validating whether or not said accuracy associated with said set of geographic coordinates of said reference feature in said image of said defined area is higher than an accuracy of a set of geographic coordinates of said reference feature in said identified image; and

generating a report conveying the location of said object.

15. The method recited in claim 14, further comprising:

determining that said acceleration of said implement exceeds a pre-defined threshold value.

16. The method recited in claim 14, further comprising:

determining that said acceleration exceeds a percentage of a baseline acceleration value.

17. A method of detecting an object comprising:

receiving, from a vehicle monitor coupled with an obstacle detection system, an indication of the presence of a selected object in a defined area, wherein said selected object is a rock and said defined area is a farm field, wherein said indication is generated in response to a change in acceleration of a device coupled with an implement, wherein said change in acceleration indicates a collision with said rock;

finding an instance of said selected object within an image of said defined area in response to said receiving said indication, wherein said image is generated after said receiving said indication;

validating a level of accuracy associated with a determined set of geographic coordinates corresponding to a location of said selected object within said image, wherein said validating comprises;

validating a presence of Z-coordinate information in said set of geographic coordinates;

validating whether or not said accuracy associated with said determined set of geographic coordinates of said reference feature in said image of said defined area is higher than an accuracy of a set of geographic coordinates of said reference feature in a second image from an image database, wherein said second image correlates to said image of said defined area;

analyzing a second image to derive a first set of coordinates of a reference feature shown in said second image;

correlating said second image with said image;

deriving a second set of coordinates which describe the location of said selected object based upon said correlating of said second image with said image; and

generating a report indicating the location of said selected object on a representation of said farm field.

18. The method recited in claim 17, wherein said representation is selected from the group consisting of a map of said defined area, a picture of said defined area, a moving image of said defined area, and a real-time representation of said defined area.