3D Object Detection Using Image and Audio Fusion
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing object detection systems, particularly those based on cameras, struggle to detect objects that are occluded or out of the camera's line of sight, leading to reduced efficacy and safety in crowded environments and uneven terrain.
Innovation Solution
Integrate audio data with image data for three-dimensional object detection by using a camera to capture images and a microphone to capture audio, generating separate three-dimensional outputs for each, and correlating these outputs to enhance detection accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If object detection relies solely on camera-based image data, then the system structure remains simple, but detection reliability deteriorates in crowded environments and uneven terrain where objects are occluded or out of line of sight
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines camera-based image data and microphone-based audio data into a unified object detection system. The camera captures visual information while the microphone array captures acoustic information, and both data streams are processed together to detect objects. This merging of different sensing modalities improves detection reliability in challenging environments without requiring excessively complex system architecture.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from two-dimensional image-based detection to three-dimensional detection by incorporating audio data that provides depth and spatial information. The audio component enables detection of objects in three-dimensional space, allowing the system to detect objects that are occluded or out of the camera's line of sight by using sound propagation characteristics.
2Measurement precision
If the system uses only camera data for detection, then the device complexity is low, but measurement precision deteriorates when objects are occluded or beyond visual range
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges camera and microphone into an integrated detection system where both sensors work together. The camera provides visual detection while the microphone array provides acoustic detection, and their outputs are combined to achieve higher measurement precision. This combination allows the system to detect objects with greater accuracy, especially in scenarios where one modality alone would fail.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent enhances measurement precision by adding the audio dimension to the traditional visual detection. The audio component provides three-dimensional spatial information that complements the two-dimensional image data, enabling more precise object localization and detection of objects that are occluded or out of sight.
3Reliability
If the system integrates both camera and audio components for three-dimensional detection, then detection reliability improves in challenging environments, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges camera and microphone array into a unified detection system with shared processing architecture. Both sensors feed into a common object detection pipeline that processes image data and audio data together, allowing the system to achieve high reliability through multi-modal sensing while managing complexity through integrated processing rather than separate independent systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a universal detection framework that handles both visual and acoustic data through a single processing system. The object detection model is designed to process multiple data types (image and audio) and generate unified detection results, making the system multi-functional while avoiding the need for separate dedicated processing chains for each sensor type.
Data Source
AI summary
In some aspects, a device may obtain, via a camera associated with the device, an image that includes one or more objects located within an area of the device. The device may generate a first three-dimensional output based at least in part on the image. The device may obtain, via an audio component associated with the device, an audio input associated with the one or more objects. The device may generate a second three-dimensional output based at least in part on the audio input. The device may detect the one or more objects based at least in part on the first three-dimensional output and the second three-dimensional output. Numerous other aspects are described.