Virtual Perspective Center Aligning Camera and Antenna
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing systems face challenges in accurately and reliably associating position and image information due to the difficulty in defining the camera's perspective center in the real world coordinate frame, which requires additional hardware and increases computational complexity, leading to inaccurate results.
Innovation Solution
The introduction of a virtual perspective center that can be coincident with the measurement center of a position measurement system, using optical elements to modify the light rays' path and simplify the alignment, reducing computational complexity and improving measurement accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If the camera is fixed to the position measurement system and calibrated to define the perspective center, then the offset between centers is fixed, but the computational complexity increases and measurement accuracy decreases due to the need for rotation and translation accounting
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a virtual perspective center as an intermediary concept that coincides with the measurement center of the position measurement system. This virtual center serves as a mediator between the camera coordinate frame and the real world coordinate frame, eliminating the need for complex transformation calculations involving rotation and translation. By placing the virtual perspective center at the measurement center, the system directly associates image information with position measurements without requiring over-constrained calibration procedures.
2Measurement precision
If additional hardware is added to obtain known coordinate data for calibration, then the perspective center can be defined, but the device complexity and noise increase leading to inaccurate results
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the essential function of defining the perspective center from the physical camera structure and relocates it to a virtual position at the measurement center. Instead of requiring additional hardware components to establish known coordinate relationships, the invention extracts the perspective center definition to a virtual location that coincides with the measurement center, thereby eliminating the need for extra calibration hardware and reducing system complexity.
3Ease of operation
If the perspective center is defined using over-constrained photogrammetric and position measurements, then the coordinate transformation can be established, but the noise increases and reliability decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the conventional approach by not trying to locate the camera's physical perspective center in the real world coordinate frame through complex measurements. Instead, it places a virtual perspective center at the measurement center and defines the camera coordinate frame relative to this virtual point. This inversion simplifies the coordinate transformation process and eliminates the noise and reliability issues associated with over-constrained measurement systems.
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
This approach simplifies the definition of the camera's perspective center in the real world coordinate frame, enhancing measurement accuracy and reliability by reducing interference and noise, and allowing for easier integration of photogrammetric and position measurements.
Implementation Method 1
an optical element coupled to the imaging device. The optical element may be configured to receive light rays propagating along an optical path and direct the light rays towards a perspective center of the imaging device
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus for acquiring image and location information includes an antenna comprising an element configured to receive signals for determining the location information, and an imaging device coupled to the antenna and configured to acquire the image information. A virtual perspective center of the imaging device is coincident with the element of the antenna.