Method and apparatus for reducing magnetic tracking error

US11486958B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• Penumbra, Inc. · US

Inventors

• Oded Zur · Kochav Yair Tzur Yigal, IL
• Alejandro Santiago Diaz · San Francisco, US
• Michael D. Collins · Portland, US
• Ran Bar-On · Tel Aviv-Yafo, IL
• Ron Barak · Nes Ziona, IL
• Amir Rubin · Kiryat Ono, IL

Key dates

• Filing date: Mar 28, 2019
• Grant date: Nov 1, 2022
• Expiry date: Aug 6, 2041

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G06N7/01
• WIPO field: Measurement
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

A method and apparatus for reducing magnetic tracking error in the position and orientation determined in an electromagnetic tracking system is disclosed. In some embodiments, a corrected position and orientation is blended with an uncorrected position and orientation based upon the calculated probability of each. To determine a corrected position and orientation, data from an IMU in the receiver is used to obtain a constraint on the orientation. In other embodiments, the amount of detected error due to electromagnetic distortion is measured. Any error is first assumed to be from “floor distortion,” and a correction is applied. If the error is still deemed too great, a constraint is again obtained from IMU data. Using this constraint, another correction for the distortion is made. The solution from this correction may be blended with a standard solution and the solution from the floor distortion to arrive at a final solution.