Abstract: For pipeline inspection, a small, untethered capsule (a “piglet”) images from within a pipeline. The capsule is small enough that rotation about any of three orthogonal axes while within the pipeline is possible. Movement both along the pipeline and perpendicular to the longitudinal axis is possible. To assure images of the pipeline without viewing gaps, the field of view for imaging surrounds the capsule without a gap. Given the possible rotation and translation, the captured images may be motion compensated to provide oriented images of a length of the pipeline.

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: 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: 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: 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: A method of using a Graphic User Interface (GUI) for interactive virtual inspection of modeled objects. The method includes acquiring a three-dimensional model of a modeled object and displaying a first view of the modeled object for a user to identify locations of interest on a surface of the modeled object visible within the first view. The user enters information to create a markup tag that annotates the location of interest, and the markup tag is automatically associated with the location of interest on the modeled object. A second view of the modeled object is displayed including the user identified location of interest and the markup tag.

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: A system and methods for activating and interacting by a user with at least a 3D object displayed on a 3D computer display by at least the user's gestures which may be combined with a user's gaze at the 3D computer display. In a first instance the 3D object is a 3D CAD object. In a second instance the 3D object is a radial menu. A user's gaze is captured by ahead frame containing at least an endo camera and an exo camera worn by a user. A user's gesture is captured by a camera and is recognized from a plurality of gestures. User's gestures are captured by a sensor and are calibrated to the 3D computer display.

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: 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: 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 s 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: Systems and methods for monitoring parking spots are disclosed. A system includes at least one vehicle and a remote computer that are in communication with each other. A vehicle includes a camera that generates image data, a location device that generates geographic coordinates of the vehicle, a computing device that receives the image data from the camera and the geographic coordinates of the vehicle and optionally data from a laser scanner that is calibrated with the camera and is connected to a smartphone that transmits data to the remote computer. Image data generated by the camera is processed with a reference image and data from the laser scanner to determine an occupation status of the parking spot. The occupation status is transmitted by the remote computer to a second vehicle.

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: A method wherein images of different types of objects within a class are partitioned into region stacks. For each one of the stacks, the method: (a) applies a template to extract fragments having a predetermined size and one of a plurality of different spatial orientations, to generate extracted templates; (b) determines, from the extracted templates, a most frequent one thereof having only a first number of fragments with a common spatial orientations; (c) records the number of images having the determined most frequent extracted template; (d) repeats (b) and (c) with successively increasing number of fragments until the number of recoded images falls below a threshold; and (e) selects as a master extracted template the one of the most frequent templates having the largest recorded number of fragments. The master extracted templates for the stacks are combined into a map that is then compared with background images to remove extracted templates matching segment in the background.

Abstract: A method of coalescing information about inspected objects. The method includes acquiring an image set of an object to be inspected, the image set having a three-dimensional model of the object and a plurality of two-dimensional images of the object. A location of interest is identified on a surface of the modeled object and global coordinate points of the three-dimensional model are designated that characterize the location of interest of the modeled object. A markup tag annotating the location of interest is associate with the designated global coordinate points of the three-dimensional model, and the markup tag is conveyed when viewing any one of the plurality of two-dimensional images of the image set that have at least one image point that correlates to a corresponding designated global coordinate point of the three-dimensional model that characterize the location of interest.

Abstract: A method for modeling a vehicle, includes: receiving an image that includes a vehicle; and constructing a three-dimensional (3D) model of the vehicle, wherein the 3D model is constructed by: (a) taking a predetermined set of base shapes that are extracted from a subset of vehicles; (b) multiplying each of the base shapes by a parameter; (c) adding the resultant of each multiplication to form a vector that represents the vehicle's shape; (d) fitting the vector to the vehicle in the image; and (e) repeating steps (a)-(d) by modifying the parameters until a difference between a fit vector and the vehicle in the image is minimized.

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 are mounted on a controllable actuator. The plurality of cameras are pointed at the device by controlling the controllable actuator to position the camera with a user interface. A computing device renders a virtual image from a CAD model of the device with a computing device. An image of the device generated by the camera is displayed on a display. The computing device also causes the rendered virtual image of the device to be displayed on the display. The camera images and the rendered images can be displayed side-by-side, in an overlay fashion or both.

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 reconstructing three-dimensional, plural views of images from two dimensional image data. The method includes: obtaining two-dimensional, stereo digital data from images of an object; processing the digital data to generate an initial three-dimensional candidate of the object, such process using projective geometric constraints imposed on edge points of the object; refining the initial candidate comprising examining spatial coherency of neighboring edge points along a surface of the candidate.

Abstract: A detection method is based on a statistical analysis of the appearance of model patches from all possible viewpoints in the scene, and incorporates 3D geometry during both matching and pose estimation processes. By analyzing the computed probability distribution of the visibility of each patch from different viewpoints, a reliability measure for each patch is estimated. That reliability measure is useful for developing industrial augmented reality applications. Using the method, the pose of complex objects can be estimated efficiently given a single test image.