Chart-Video Fusion Display for Intuitive Marine Navigation
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional navigational systems for watercraft and other mobile structures separate video/image feeds from charts, requiring users to mentally correlate real-life objects with chart data, which is challenging due to plan view representations and lack of intuitive navigation aids.
Innovation Solution
A sensor fusion system that uses a logic device to receive images from an imaging module, detect objects, and generate a fused image by superimposing the detected objects onto a chart from a synthetically elevated view, aligning them with their geographical positions, providing an intuitive and comprehensive representation of the environment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If video and image feeds are displayed separately from charts, then the systems can be simpler to implement, but users must perform mental processes to correlate real-life objects with chart data, increasing operational complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges video/image feeds with chart data into a single integrated display. The camera system captures real-life objects and the chart system provides navigational data, and both are combined in one view, allowing users to see both the actual environment and chart information simultaneously without mental correlation efforts.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary processing system that captures images from the camera, identifies objects, and overlays chart data onto the video feed. This intermediary layer automatically correlates real-life objects with chart data, eliminating the need for users to perform manual mental correlation.
2Ease of manufacture
If charts are displayed in a plan view, then the chart data can be presented in a standard format, but it becomes difficult for users to determine steering directions from northerly cardinal
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transforms the chart display from a traditional 2D plan view to a 3D perspective view that aligns with the camera's field of view. This dimensional change allows users to see chart data in the same spatial context as real-life objects, making it intuitive to determine steering directions from northerly cardinal without mentally rotating or interpreting plan view projections.
3Adaptability or versatility
If video and chart systems remain separate, then each system can be optimized independently, but the overall navigation effectiveness is reduced due to lack of integrated representation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines separate video and chart systems into a unified navigation display. The camera system continues to capture real-time video while the chart system provides navigational data, and both are merged into a single integrated representation that enhances navigation effectiveness by providing a comprehensive view of the environment and chart information simultaneously.
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques are disclosed for systems and methods for providing a fused image that combines image data of a scene received from an imaging system with a chart to aid in the navigation of a mobile structure. Specifically, the fused image may be generated by superimposing various image elements extracted from an image onto various locations on the chart that correlate to the actual positions of the objects within the scene. In some embodiments, one or more non-water objects may be detected within the image, image representations of the non-water objects may be extracted from the image feed, and the extracted image representations may be superimposed onto locations on the chart that are determined to correlate to the actual positions of the non-water objects within the scene.