Abstract: A camera-based and direct observation based relative position determination method for multiple unmanned aerial, naval and ground vehicles is provided. The method calculates the relative position between the relevant vehicles in multiple UAV, UNV and UGV systems.

Abstract: Systems and methods for inspecting a device include arranging the device in a known position relative to a plurality of movable cameras mounted on a controllable actuator controlled by a computing device and pointed at the device by controlling the controllable actuator to position a camera with a user interface on the computing device with a display, and the display displays a virtual image from the camera into CAD model of the device and an image of the device generated by the camera in a side-by-side or in an overlay fashion or both.

Abstract: A rotating rotor in a turbine has blades attached. At least one blade is a reference blade of which a reference position is determined by a Once-Per-Rotation sensor. A camera positioned at a viewing port takes a sequence of images of all the blades during a rotation at a trigger moment determined by a controller. The controller receives a signal indicating that the reference blade passes its reference point. The controller is provided with data about the number of blades, the position of the camera and a desired dwell of an image related to the blade. The controller calculates the trigger moments and generates trigger signals to the camera. The trigger moment is adjusted for changing rotor speed by extracting a blade feature from blade images. The camera records images that are labeled and stored as image data on a storage device.

Abstract: Computer assisted design data is rendered in the cloud. A client-server relationship is provided for 3D rendering. To reduce the burden on the server, the 3D rendering adapts based on the client capabilities. Where possible, some of the 3D rendering is performed by the server and some by the client machine. The 3D rendering by the client machine may be limited to avoid transfer of geometrical data of the CAD data. Different textures or shaders are used for rendering images associated with motion. Dictionary information is accumulated by the client machine to reduce the number of coefficients later transferred to the client machine for 3D rendering. The model represented by the CAD data is used to predict rendered images so that video compression may be performed. The server sparsely renders an image and compressive sensing is used by the client machine to generate the complete image.

Abstract: A multi-view stereo approach generates an inventory of objects located on an object holder. An object may be a sample tube and an object holder may be a tube rack as used in lab automation for healthcare diagnostics. A processor performs 3D tracking of the object holder and the geometric analysis of multiple images generated by a calibrated camera. A homography mapping between images is utilized to warp a second image to a viewpoint of a first image. Plane induced parallax causes a normalized cross-correlation score between the first image and the warped second image of a location on the holder that has an object that is significantly different from a normalized cross-correlation score of a location that has not an object and enables the processor to infer tube inventory and absence or presence of a tube at a location in a rack.

Abstract: An on-line optical inspection and monitoring system is externally mounted to existing man way service access within the combustor housing. A replacement man way cover having an optical window is mounted to the combustor housing. One or more optical cameras are oriented so that the camera field of view (FOV) is directed through the man way cover optical window. The camera FOV is moved to plural positions within the combustion section, such as under control of an automated motion control system, and images are captured. Multiple images are combined to form a composite image, which may include an image of an entire transition within the combustion section. Visual images and/or infrared (IR) thermal images may be captured. Thermal image information is correlated with component temperature. Image information is utilized to determine vibration characteristics of the imaged components.

Abstract: Active lighting is provided for stereo reconstruction (30) of edges (11) of a Delta-8 bundle. Stereo images of a device with edges (11) are captured (24). The image capture (24) is repeated under different lighting conditions, such as illuminating (22) the edges (11) from different directions. The images from each viewing or capture direction are combined (28). The combined images are used to stereographically reconstruct (30) the edges (11).

Abstract: Two adjacent objects with a gap between the objects rotate in a hot atmosphere with a temperature greater than 300 F in a gas turbine. Automatic and accurate contactless measurement of the gap is performed by taking images of the gap. An image, preferably an infra-red image is taken from the gap, a processor extracts the two edges from the image of the gap. The processor also determines a line through the pixels of an edge by applying a Hough transform on the pixels. The edges are substantially parallel. A line substantially perpendicular to the lines is also determined. Using the substantially parallel lines and the line substantially perpendicular to the substantially parallel lines the processor determines a width of the gap.

Abstract: Internal components of gas or steam turbines are inspected with a 3D scanning camera inspection system that is inserted and positioned within the turbine, for example through a gas turbine combustor nozzle port. Three dimensional internal component measurements are performed using projected light patterns generated by a stripe projector and a 3D white light matrix camera. Real time dimensional information is gathered without physical contact, which is helpful for extracting off-line engineering information about the scanned structures. Exemplary 3D scans, preferably with additional visual images, are performed of the gas path side of a gas turbine combustor support housing, combustor basket and transition with or without human intervention.

Abstract: Internal components of power generation machinery, such as gas and steam turbines are inspected with an optical camera inspection system that is capable of automatically positioning the camera field of view (FOV) to an area of interest within the machinery along a pre-designated navigation path and capturing images without human intervention. Automatic camera positioning and image capture can be initiated automatically or after receipt of operator permission. The pre-designated navigation path can be defined by operator manual positioning of an inspection scope within the power machine or a similar one of the same type and recording of positioning steps for future replication. The navigation path can also be defined by virtual simulation.

Abstract: Systems and methods for inspecting a device are disclosed. The method includes arranging the device in a known position relative to a plurality of movable cameras. The plurality of movable cameras is mounted on a controllable actuator. The plurality of cameras is pointed at the device by controlling the controllable actuator to position the camera with a user interface. An image of the device generated by the camera is displayed on a mobile and wireless display. The computing device also causes a rendered virtual image of the device to be displayed on the mobile and wireless display. A stream of interest and a region of interest is selected at the mobile and wireless display from the images generated by the cameras.

Abstract: Disclosed are methods adapted to calibrate a robot gripper to a camera. The method includes providing a robot with a coupled moveable gripper, providing one or more cameras, providing a target scene having one or more fixed target points, moving the gripper and capturing images of the target scene at two or more imaging locations, recording positions in the gripper coordinate system for each of the imaging locations, recording images in a camera coordinate system, and processing the images and positions to determine a gripper-to-camera transformation between the gripper coordinate system and the camera coordinate system. The transformation may be accomplished by nonlinear least-squares minimization, such as the Levenberg-Marquardt method. Robot calibration apparatus for carrying out the method are disclosed, as are other aspects.

Abstract: A system and methods for geometric calibration and use of head-worn multi-camera eye tracking system are provided. The system calibrates the internal and external parameters of the cameras as well as the parameters of a compact geometric model of the human eye. An exo-camera determines a relative pose with regard to a computer monitor and endo-cameras determine the eyeball position and orientation. An endo-exo calibration and an endo-eye calibration each with an optimization step are included. A homography and a joint optimization step are also provided. A single point calibration re-establishes calibration. The system in operational mode determines a user's gaze direction to perform a computer input function.

Abstract: A method for determining geometric properties of a target shape such as a shape of a perimeter of a strut shield (36) for use in a gas turbine (10). The method includes obtaining a digital image of at least a portion of a first object including a first feature (164) (106). The image including the first feature (164) is displayed on a display device (108). During a reconstruction process, one or more control points (168A, 168B, 168C, 168D) are associated with feature points (164A, 164B, 164C) along an extent of the displayed first feature (164) (109). Using the associated one or more control points (168A, 168B, 168C and 168D), a data file is created that corresponds to the first feature (164) (114). The data file includes geometric properties of the feature points (164A, 164B, 164C).

Abstract: Internal components of power generation machinery, such as gas and steam turbines are inspected with an optical camera inspection system that is capable of automatically positioning the camera field of view (FOV) to an area of interest within the machinery along a pre-designated navigation path and capturing images without human intervention. Automatic camera positioning and image capture can be initiated automatically or after receipt of operator permission. The pre-designated navigation path can be defined by operator manual positioning of an inspection scope within the power machine or a similar one of the same type and recording of positioning steps for future replication. The navigation path can also be defined by virtual simulation. The inspection system includes an articulated multi-axis inspection scope.

Abstract: An object in a hot atmosphere with a temperature greater than 400 F in a gas turbine moves in a 3D space. The movement may include a vibrational movement. The movement includes a rotational movement about an axis and a translational movement along the axis. Images of the object are recorded with a camera, which may be a high-speed camera. The object is provided with a pattern that is tracked in images. Warpings of sub-patches in a reference image of the object are determined to form standard format warped areas. The warpings are applied piece-wise to areas in following images to create corrected images. Standard tracking such as SSD tracking is applied to the piece-wise corrected images to determine a movement of the object. The image correction and object tracking are performed by a processor.

Abstract: A multi-view stereo approach generates an inventory of objects located on an object holder. An object may be a sample tube and an object holder may be a tube rack as used in lab automation for healthcare diagnostics. A processor performs 3D tracking of the object holder and the geo-metric analysis of multiple images generated by a calibrated camera. A homography mapping between images is utilized to warp a second image to a viewpoint of a first image. Plane induced parallax causes a normalized cross-correlation score between the first image and the warped second image of a location on the holder that has an object that is significantly different from a normalized cross-correlation score of a location that has not an object and enables the processor to infer tube inventory and absence or presence of a tube at a location in a rack.

Abstract: An on-line optical inspection and monitoring system is externally mounted to existing man way service access within the combustor housing. A replacement man way cover having an optical window is mounted to the combustor housing. One or more optical cameras are oriented so that the camera field of view (FOV) is directed through the man way cover optical window. The camera FOV is moved to plural positions within the combustion section, such as under control of an automated motion control system, and images are captured. Multiple images are combined to form a composite image, which may include an image of an entire transition within the combustion section. Visual images and/or infrared (IR) thermal images may be captured. Thermal image information is correlated with component temperature. Image information is utilized to determine vibration characteristics of the imaged components.

Abstract: Computer assisted design data is rendered in the cloud. A client-server relationship is provided for 3D rendering. To reduce the burden on the server, the 3D rendering adapts based on the client capabilities. Where possible, some of the 3D rendering is performed by the server and some by the client machine. The 3D rendering by the client machine may be limited to avoid transfer of geometrical data of the CAD data. Different textures or shaders are used for rendering images associated with motion. Dictionary information is accumulated by the client machine to reduce the number of coefficients later transferred to the client machine for 3D rendering. The model represented by the CAD data is used to predict rendered images so that video compression may be performed. The server sparsely renders an image and compressive sensing is used by the client machine to generate the complete image.

Abstract: A system for imaging characters on a surface of an object through a coating on the object includes one or more infrared (IR) radiation sources disposed to irradiate IR radiation upon a object, an IR camera disposed to received IR radiation reflected from the surface of the object, the IR camera adapted to create a digital image of the surface of the object from the received IR radiation, and a computing device in signal communication with the IR camera adapted to receive the digital image of the surface of the object from the IR camera, in which the computing device has installed therein optical character recognition (OCR) software adapted to detecting and recognizing characters imprinted upon the surface of the object.