Construction and civil engineering database generator and display

• US 6,501,501 B1
• Filed: 04/27/2000
• Issued: 12/31/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 04/28/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Aizudoken Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Aizudoken Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Miyazawa, Takeo
• Primary Examiner(s): Britton, Howard
• Assistant Examiner(s): ALAM, SHAHID AL
• Application Number:
  US09/559,328
• Time in Patent Office: 978 Days
• Field of Search: 707/102, 707/104.1, 707/5, 701/208, 702/3, 703/6, 704/1, 706/14, 713/200, 717/105, 345/419, 345/441, 345/630, 345/853, 340/870.07, 340/901, 340/990, 340/995, 382/103, 382/104, 382/113, 348/82-84, 348/113, 348/135, 348/142-148, 386/95
• US Class Current: 348/143
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0232 based on qualitative trend analysis, e.g. system evolution
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0272 Presentation of monitored results, e.g. selection of status reports to be displayed; Filtering information to the user
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0283 Predictive maintenance, e.g. involving the monitoring of a system and, based on the monitoring results, taking decisions on the maintenance schedule of the monitored system; Estimating remaining useful life [RUL] preventive maintenance, i.e. planning maintenance according to the available resources without monitoring the system G06Q10/06
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/40 of multimedia data, e.g. slideshows comprising image and additional audio data retrieval of still image data G06F16/50; retrieval of audio data G06F16/60; retrieval of video data G06F16/70
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/487 using geographical or spatial information, e.g. location
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99935 Query augmenting and refining, e.g. inexact access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing

Abstract

A device generates a database suited for maintenance of construction and civil engineering works, particularly very long and narrow bridges, roads, and slope faces. A device also displays the database. The database generator comprises a video camera which moves in the direction of the length of said object to successively capture images of an object, a position measuring unit which outputs data relating to the capturing position, a video recorder which records the output from said image input unit in synchronism with the positional information output from said position measuring unit, an image synthesis unit which, when the information recorded by said video recorder is reproduced, refers to said positional information and synthesizes the reproduced plurality of images into one image, and a memory for storing the synthesized image. The generated image database is posted on an Internet server and displayed via a browser.

Claims

1. A construction and civil engineering database generator which synthesizes a plurality of successive images of a long and narrow construction or civil engineering object to generate the data for said object in its whole size, comprising:

an image input unit which moves in the direction of the length of said object to successively capture images of said object;

a position measuring unit which outputs data relating to the capturing position;

a video recorder which records the output from said image input unit in synchronism with the positional information output from said position measuring unit;

an image synthesis unit which, when the information recorded by said video recorder is reproduced, referred to said positional information and synthesizes the reproduced plurality of images into one image; and

a memory for storing the synthesized image.

2. A construction and civil engineering database generator according to claim 1, the generator being mounted on a vehicle, wherein said image input unit is arranged to successively capture images of said object following the movement of said vehicle, said position measuring unit comprises at least one of a car navigation device and an independent GPS device, and the database generator further comprises a modem to modulate the digital positional information output to record the information in the audio channel of said video recorder.

3. A construction and civil engineering database generator according to claim 1, the generator being mounted on a vehicle, wherein said image input unit is arranged to successively capture images of said object following the movement of said vehicle, said position measuring unit comprises at least one of a car navigation device and an independent GPS device, and the database generator further comprises a frame memory to store the digital positional information output as digital data.

4. A construction and civil engineering database generator according to claim 1, the generator being mounted on a platform that is freely movable within the interior of a cylindrical structure including pipelines, aqueducts and tunnels, wherein said image input unit is arranged to successively capture images of the interior of said cylindrical structure following the movement of the image input unit, said position measuring unit uses acoustic waves or ultrasonic waves, and the database generator further comprises a modem to modulate the digital positional information output to record the information in the audio channel of said video recorder.

5. A construction and civil engineering database generator according to claim 1, the generator being mounted on a platform that is freely movable within the interior of a cylindrical structure including pipelines, aqueducts and tunnels, wherein said image input unit is arranged to successively capture images of the interior of said cylindrical structure following the movement of the image input unit, said position measuring unit uses acoustic waves or ultrasonic waves, and the database generator further comprises a frame memory to store the digital positional information output as digital data.

6. A construction and civil engineering database generator according to claim 5, wherein said position measuring unit comprises a transmitter for transmitting ultrasonic pulses and a receiver for receiving the reflected waves, and said video recorder records the output from said receiver as said positional information.

7. A construction and civil engineering database generator according to claim 5, wherein said position measuring unit comprises a vibrator for vibrating said cylindrical structure and a detector for detecting said vibration, and said video recorder records the output from said detector as said positional information.

8. A construction and civil engineering database generator according to claim 1, wherein, when images of said object are captured and synthesized at different times, said memory stores a plurality of synthesized image data for each of said times.

9. A construction and civil engineering database generator according to claim 1, wherein the images stored in said memory comprise three-dimensional positional information relating to the displayed portion, and link information relating to said portion.

10. A device for displaying the image of the long and narrow object obtained from a construction and civil engineering database generator which synthesizes a plurality of successive images of a long and narrow construction or civil engineering object to generate the data for said object in its whole size,

the data base generator comprising:

an image input unit which moves in the direction of the length of said object to successively capture images of said object;

a position measuring unit which outputs data relating to the capturing position;

a video recorder which records the output from said image input unit in synchronism with the positional information output from said position measuring unit;

an image synthesis unit which, when the information recorded by said video recorder is reproduced, refers to said positional information and synthesizes the reproduced plurality of images into one image; and

a memory for storing the synthesized image,

and the display device comprising;

a main screen display unit which displays the main image showing a portion of said object; and

a sub-screen display unit which displays the sub-image indicating which part of said object said main screen is displaying.

11. A construction and civil engineering database display according to claim 10, comprising a link display unit displaying link information contained in said image.

12. A construction and civil engineering database display according to claim 11, wherein said link information relates to the three-dimensional positional information of said image and includes at least one of comment information, estimate information, solution method information, and related internet address information.

13. A construction and civil engineering database display according to claim 10, comprising a comparator which compares plurality of images stored in said memory and outputs information relating to the portion to which changes have occurred.

14. A construction and civil engineering database display according to claim 10, comprising an image data updating section which updates corresponding portions of images stored in said memory based on newly obtained image portions of said object.

15. A construction and civil engineering database display according to claim 10, wherein the construction and civil engineering database is built on an Internet server, and said main screen display unit and said sub-screen display unit are realized through an Internet browser.