Measuring instrument for preparing three-dimensional point cloud model

• US 9,369,697 B2
• Filed: 02/26/2014
• Issued: 06/14/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/08/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Topcon
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Topcon
• Inventors: Kumagai, Kaoru, Otani, Hitoshi, Kasori, Naoto, Sasaki, You, Sasagawa, Jun, Fukaya, Nobuyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Harvey, David
• Application Number:
  US14/190,688
• Publication Number:
  US 20140253689A1
• Time in Patent Office: 839 Days
• Field of Search: 348/46, 348/135, 348/142, 382/106
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 11/06 by comparison of two or more pictures of the same area
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 3/00 Measuring distances in line of sight; Optical rangefinders tapes, chains or wheels for measuring length G01B3/00; active triangulation systems, i.e. using the transmission and reflection of electromagnetic waves other than radio waves, G01S17/48
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/275 from 3D object models, e.g. computer-generated stereoscopic image signals

Abstract

A measuring instrument comprises an spherical camera (8) for acquiring image data over total circumference, a laser scanner (6, 7) installed integrally with the spherical camera and for acquiring point cloud data of the surroundings, a synchronous control unit (9) for controlling acquisition of data of the spherical camera and the laser scanner, a storage unit (12) for recording the image data and the point cloud data, an absolute scale acquiring means for acquiring an absolute scale for obtaining an absolute position of when images are photographed by the spherical camera, and a control arithmetic unit (10), wherein the control arithmetic unit calculates a 3D model based on the image data, the point cloud data, and the absolute position.

Claims

1. A measuring instrument, comprising an spherical camera for acquiring image data over total circumference, a laser scanner installed integrally with said spherical camera and for acquiring point cloud data of the surroundings, a synchronous control unit for controlling acquisition of data of said spherical camera and said laser scanner, a storage unit for recording said image data and said point cloud data, an absolute scale acquiring means for acquiring an absolute scale for obtaining an absolute position of when images are photographed by said spherical camera, a control arithmetic unit, and a moving vehicle,

wherein at least said spherical camera, said laser scanner, said synchronous control unit, and said storage unit are provided on said moving vehicle,

wherein said absolute scale acquiring means includes an absolute scale object, on which a scale in provided to indicate an already known length, provided at a predetermined position within a photographing range which said spherical camera photographs while said moving vehicle is moving, and

an absolute scale acquiring program for extracting said absolute scale object from the image and for thereby acquiring said absolute scale for image correction, wherein said control arithmetic unit includes an image processing program, an image tracking program, a photogrammetry program, a program for acquiring said absolute scale from the image, a program for converting a relative length in the image to actual size and a program for calculating a 3D model based on the image data and on the point cloud data,

determines the actually measured value of the moving amount of the moving vehicle from the image before and after moving based on said absolute scale as acquired by said absolute acquiring means, regards the actually measured value of the moving amount as a base line length necessary for photogrammetry, and

calculates a 3D model based on the image acquired by said spherical camera, said base line length and said programs.

4. A measuring instrument according to claim 1, wherein said synchronous control unit synchronously controls the acquisition of said image data by said spherical camera at predetermined time intervals and the acquisition of said point cloud data by said laser scanner when said moving vehicle is moving, the time of acquisition of said image data and said point cloud data are put on said image data and said point cloud data as time stamps, and said image data and said point cloud data are associated with each other based on said time stamps.

5. A measuring instrument according to claim 4, wherein said control arithmetic unit carries out photogrammetry based on images adjacent to each other, converts the position where each of the images have been acquired based on said absolute scale obtained by said absolute scale acquiring means to an absolute scale, calculates the position where said point cloud has been acquired based on said absolute scale, synthesizes said point cloud data to said image, prepares a local 3D model, and further, said control arithmetic unit sequentially combines the 3D models adjacent to each other, and prepares a wide-area 3D model of the entire measurement range.

2. A measuring instrument, comprising an spherical camera for acquiring image data over total circumference, a laser scanner installed integrally with said spherical camera and for acquiring point cloud data of the surroundings, a synchronous control unit for controlling acquisition of data of said spherical camera and said laser scanner, a storage unit for recording said image data and said point cloud data, an absolute scale acquiring means for acquiring an absolute scale for obtaining an absolute position of when images are photographed by said spherical camera, a control arithmetic unit, and a moving vehicle,

wherein at least said spherical camera, said laser scanner, said synchronous control unit, and said storage unit are provided on said moving vehicle,

wherein said absolute scale acquiring means includes a prism integrally provided with said spherical camera, and a total station, which is installed at an already known position, tracks said prism and measures said prism and acquires photographing positions of said spherical camera based on a measurement result of said total station, wherein said control arithmetic unit includes an image processing program, an image tracking program, a photogrammetry program, a program for converting a relative length in the image to actual size and a program for calculating a 3D model based on the image data and on the point cloud data,

determines the actually measured value of the moving amount of the moving vehicle from the image before and after moving based on said photographing positions as acquired by said absolute acquiring means, regards the actually measured value of the moving amount as a base line length necessary for photogrammetry, and

calculates a 3D model based on the image acquired by said spherical camera, said base line length and said programs.

6. A measuring instrument according to claim 2, wherein said synchronous control unit synchronously controls the acquisition of said image data by said spherical camera at predetermined time intervals and the acquisition of said point cloud data by said laser scanner when said moving vehicle is moving, the time of acquisition of said image data and said point cloud data are put on said image data and said point cloud data as time stamps, and said image data and said point cloud data are associated with each other based on said time stamps.

7. A measuring instrument according to claim 6, wherein said control arithmetic unit carries out photogrammetry based on images adjacent to each other, converts the position where each of the images have been acquired based on said absolute scale obtained by said absolute scale acquiring means to an absolute scale, calculates the position where said point cloud has been acquired based on said absolute scale, synthesizes said point cloud data to said image, prepares a local 3D model, and further, said control arithmetic unit sequentially combines the 3D models adjacent to each other, and prepares a wide-area 3D model of the entire measurement range.

3. A measuring instrument, comprising an spherical camera for acquiring image data over total circumference, a laser scanner installed integrally with said spherical camera and for acquiring point cloud data of the surroundings, a synchronous control unit for controlling acquisition of data of said spherical camera and said laser scanner, a storage unit for recording said image data and said point cloud data, an absolute scale acquiring means for acquiring an absolute scale for obtaining an absolute position of when images are photographed by said spherical camera, a control arithmetic unit, and a moving vehicle,

wherein at least said spherical camera, said laser scanner, said synchronous control unit, and said storage unit are provided on said moving vehicle,

wherein said absolute scale acquiring means includes a wheel encoder provided on a wheel of said moving vehicle, actually measures the moving amount of said moving vehicle based on a rotation angle detected by said wheel encoder and a diameter of said wheel and obtains the moving amount as an absolute scale,

wherein said control arithmetic unit includes an image processing program, an image tracking program, a photogrammetry program, a program for converting a relative length in the image to actual size and a program for calculating a 3D model based on the image data and on the point cloud data,

determines the actually measured value of the moving amount of the moving vehicle from the image before and after moving based on said absolute scale as acquired by said absolute acquiring means, regards the actually measured value of the moving amount as a base line length necessary for photogrammetry, and

calculates a 3D model based on the image acquired by said spherical camera, said base line length and said programs.