Coordinate Transformation Matrix for Railway Track Recognition
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current systems face challenges in effectively recognizing railway tracks from images for obstacle detection, especially when the track appears in small size or with varying inclinations, leading to insecure recognition and potential safety hazards.
Innovation Solution
A car system equipped with a camera and information processing apparatus that generates a transformation matrix to associate geodetic coordinates with image coordinates, allowing for accurate recognition of railway tracks and setting a traveling region, even in cases where image processing techniques fail due to track size or inclination variations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Difficulty of detecting and measuring
If image processing techniques are used to detect railway tracks, then obstacle detection capability is improved, but recognition reliability deteriorates when tracks appear in small size or with varying inclinations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary coordinate transformation system that bridges geodetic coordinates and image coordinates. By using a transformation matrix as a mediator, the system can accurately locate railway tracks in images even when they appear small or at varying inclinations, thus resolving the contradiction between detection capability and recognition reliability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transforms the problem from direct image space analysis to a combined geodetic-coordinate and image-coordinate system. By adding the dimension of geodetic coordinates and using coordinate transformation, the system achieves reliable track recognition regardless of track size or inclination in the original image space
2Area of stationary object
If the camera captures a wide area to ensure track visibility, then the track may appear in small size, but capturing a narrower area improves track detail while reducing coverage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the parameter space by introducing geodetic coordinates as an additional reference system. This allows the system to accurately determine track coordinates even when tracks appear small in wide-area images, resolving the contradiction between coverage area and recognition precision
Data Source
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AI summary
According to one embodiment, the information processing apparatus includes an image interface, a communication interface, and a processor. The image interface is configured to acquire an image comprising an image of a railway track and an image of pieces of equipment. The communication interface is configured to acquire railway track information indicative of a geodetic coordinate of the railway track and equipment information indicative of geodetic coordinates of the pieces of equipment. The processor is configured to: specify, in the acquired image, a plurality of equipment regions in which the pieces of equipment appear; generate, based on coordinates of the equipment regions and the geodetic coordinates of the pieces of equipment, a transformation matrix for associating a geodetic coordinate with a coordinate in the acquired image; and specify a coordinate of the railway track by transforming the geodetic coordinate of the railway track using the transformation matrix.