System and method for interactive 3D air regions

• US 7,940,259 B2
• Filed: 11/30/2005
• Issued: 05/10/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Uncharted Software, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Uncharted Software, Inc.
• Inventors: Wright, William, Bethune, Christopher, Kapler, Thomas
• Primary Examiner(s): Hajnik; Daniel F
• Application Number:
  US11/289,380
• Publication Number:
  US 20060146048A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,987 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 345/419
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 23/00 Combined instruments indicating more than one navigational value, e.g. for aircraft; Combined measuring devices for measuring two or more variables of movement, e.g. distance, speed or acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0095 Aspects of air-traffic control not provided for in the other subgroups of this main group

Abstract

A system and method for generating a region in an air-space environment for presentation in a visual representation. The region is configured for positioning in an aerial domain of the environment coupled to an adjacent reference domain of the environment. The system comprises a control element generator configured for providing a plurality of control elements of the region, wherein the plurality of control elements are distributed in the air-space environment such that each of the plurality of control elements is coupled to a respective coordinate associated with the reference domain the system and method also have a link generator configured for providing a plurality of link elements of the region for linking each of the control elements to one another to define a plurality of bounding surfaces of the region, and an edit module for adjusting at least one presentation property of the region.

Claims

1. A system for generating a region in an air-space environment for presentation in a visual representation, the region for positioning in an aerial domain of the environment coupled to an adjacent reference surface of the environment, the system comprising:

a data processing system including a user interface coupled to a processor to interact with user events to coordinate interaction of modules for generating the visual representation;

a control element generator module of the modules configured to provide a plurality of control elements of the region, the plurality of control elements for distribution in the air-space environment such that each of the plurality of control elements is coupled to a respective coordinate associated with the reference surface, each of the control elements defining a localized volume having a presentation property being an associated size, an associated shape or a combination thereof of the respective control element;

a link generator module of the modules configured to provide a plurality of link elements of the region for sequentially linking each of the plurality of control elements to one another such that both the control elements and the link elements define a plurality of bounding surfaces about the periphery of the region, the position of the link elements with respect to one another in the environment being related to said presentation property; and

an edit module of the modules configured to adjust said associated size of a selected control element of the plurality of control elements and the corresponding volume of the selected control element to result in a corresponding adjustment in the link elements connected thereto and in a volume of the region defined by those said link elements approaching said selected control element.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of control elements includes at least one two dimensional shape defining the region as an area or one three dimensional shape defining the region as a volume.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the shape includes portions selected from the group comprising linear and arcuate and said at least one property is either a size or a shape of the control elements.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein at least one of the plurality of control elements represents an intersection region of the region between a pair of adjacent link elements of the plurality of link elements.

5. The system of claim 2 further comprising the generators configured to provide a plurality of the regions.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein each of the regions is a directional path for connecting a departure location with an arrival location.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the each of the regions is selected from the group comprising an air path and an outer-space path.

8. The system of claim 2 further comprising a plurality of templates for providing predefined portions of the region selected from the group comprising the link elements and the control elements.

9. The system of claim 2 further comprising an entity module for generating an entity element for placement in the air-space environment and for assigning at least one property to the entity.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein a plurality of the entities are selected from the group comprising;

a man-made structure, a natural structure, and a vehicle.

11. The system of claim 9 further comprising a simulation module for simulating temporal changes in the region and entity element and for simulating any interactions between the region and the entity.

12. The system of claim 2 further comprising a sight module for defining a hidden portion of the reference surface as seen from a field of view from a location in the region.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the sight module is further configured for defining a hidden portion of the region as seen from a field of view from a location in the reference surface.

14. The system of claim 2 further comprising a navigation module for providing field of views of the reference surface as seen from a location in the region.

15. The system of claim 5 further comprising a conflict module for defining an overlap portion associated with at least one of the regions.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the overlap portion is selected from the group comprising:

an intersection of two adjacent ones of the regions; and

an intersection between one of the paths and the adjacent reference surface.

17. The system of claim 2 further comprising the edit module configured to assign a translucency value to selected ones of the bounding surfaces.

23. The system according to claim 1 wherein the link elements are connected to the control elements at the periphery of the control elements for defining the bounding surfaces of the region.

24. The system according to claim 1 wherein the edit module includes control handle elements for presentation in the visual representation, the control handle elements being for adjusting said presentation property of said at least one of the control elements selected from the group comprising:

altitude;

the associated size or the associated shape or a combination thereof.

25. The system according to claim 24, wherein the control handle elements facilitate independent adjustment of the altitude, the associated size, or the associated shape.

26. The system of claim 1, wherein the adjusting of said associated size is done while the size of a control element adjacent to said selected control element remains constant.

18. A method for generating a region in an air-space environment for presentation in a visual representation on a user interface of a data processing system, the region for positioning in an aerial domain of the environment coupled to an adjacent reference surface of the environment, the method comprising the steps of:

providing a plurality of control elements of the region on the user interface, the plurality of control elements for distribution in the air-space environment such that each of the plurality of control elements is coupled to a respective coordinate associated with the reference surface each of the control elements defining a localized volume having a presentation property being an associated size, an associated shape or a combination thereof, of the respective control element;

providing a plurality of link elements of the region on the user interface for sequentially linking each of the control elements to one another to define a plurality of bounding surfaces about the periphery of the region, the position of the link elements with respect to one another in the environment being related to said presentation property; and

adjusting said associated size of a selected control element of the control elements and the corresponding volume thereof to result in a corresponding adjustment in the link elements connected thereto and in a volume of the region defined by those said link elements approaching said selected control element.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the plurality of control elements includes at least one two dimensional shape defining the region as an area or one three dimensional shape defining the region as a volume.

20. The method of claim 19 further comprising the step of providing a plurality of the regions.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein each of the regions is a directional path for connecting a departure location with an arrival location.

22. A computer program product for generating a region in an air-space environment for presentation in a visual representation, the region configured for positioning in an aerial domain of the environment coupled to an adjacent reference domain of the environment, the computer program product comprising:

a non-transitory computer readable medium comprising program code means stored thereon and executable by a processor of a computing device, apparatus or system for implementing the method of claim 18.

27. The method of claim 18, wherein the adjusting of said associated size is done while the size of a control element adjacent to said selected control element remains constant.