Inspection Imaging and Projection for Marker-Based Vehicle Pose Tracking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for determining the pose of inspection devices in motor vehicles, such as outside-in and inside-out motion tracking, are unsuitable for workshop environments due to high cost, complex lighting requirements, measurement errors, and lack of accuracy, especially at the edges of fisheye lenses, and require manual input for marker positioning.
Innovation Solution
A mobile inspection device with a movable positioning arm, multiple degrees of freedom, and a combination of cameras with narrower fields of view and different orientations, along with calibration targets and markers in the measuring space, allows for precise pose determination and autonomous navigation, creating an absolute coordinate system for accurate measurements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If outside-in motion tracking with multiple cameras is used, then measurement coverage is improved, but device complexity and cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the traditional outside-in motion tracking approach by implementing inside-out motion tracking, where a single camera moves with the inspection device and uses stationary markers in the environment for pose determination. This reduces the number of cameras from multiple to one while maintaining measurement coverage through the mobile platform's movement.
Solution Approach 2:
The system transitions from a static multi-camera setup to a dynamic single-camera system mounted on a mobile platform. The camera's position changes over time as the platform moves, allowing comprehensive measurement coverage to be achieved through temporal-spatial sampling rather than simultaneous multi-camera coverage.
2Device complexity
If inside-out motion tracking with a single camera is used, then device complexity is reduced, but measurement accuracy deteriorates due to obscured areas and reflective surfaces
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces markers as intermediary objects that facilitate accurate pose determination. These markers are placed in the environment and serve as reliable reference points that the moving camera can detect, overcoming problems with obscured areas and reflective surfaces by providing dedicated, high-contrast detection targets.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the detection parameters by using specialized markers with specific visual characteristics (high contrast, known geometry) rather than relying on natural features. This allows the camera to achieve high measurement precision by detecting these controlled visual parameters even in challenging lighting and reflective conditions.
3Area of stationary object
If fisheye lens is used for wide field of view, then measurement coverage is improved, but measurement precision deteriorates at image edges
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of requiring a single camera to capture the entire measurement area simultaneously (excessive action), the system uses a camera with a narrower field of view that captures only the necessary portion at each moment, relying on the mobile platform's movement to cover the remaining area through sequential sampling (partial action).
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The device enables precise, autonomous, and cost-effective inspection of vehicles by eliminating the need for complex setups, reducing measurement errors, and allowing simultaneous measurement of multiple criteria with enhanced accuracy and flexibility.
Implementation Method 1
a camera unit for the optical capture of a calibration target or marker
Implementation Method 2
a projector unit for the projection of visual information onto a projection target surface
Data Source
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AI summary
The present disclosure relates, inter alia, to an image acquisition and projection device for an inspection device comprising: a camera unit for visually acquiring an environment of the inspection device; a projector unit for projecting light onto a projection target surface; wherein the projection unit is configured to project visual information onto a variety of differently designed surfaces acquired by the camera unit.