Method of solving initial azimuth for survey instruments, cameras, and other devices with position and tilt information
US9891049B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Oct 29, 2015 |
| Grant date | Feb 13, 2018 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Oct 5, 2036 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06T2207/30244
- WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A method for solving the initial azimuth for a survey instrument, and other devices, with position and tilt information. The method may be part of bundle adjustment performed during the processing of image and position data collected from each camera of a survey instrument. The use of the initial azimuth generation method (and initial azimuth generator) makes it possible to get accurate azimuth orientation of a camera, such as each camera of a multi-camera survey instrument, without using data from a compass-like sensor. The initial azimuth generated by this method can then be used in later steps/processes of the bundle adjustment to find tie-points with an automatic tie-point finder. Prior to this method, the automatic tie-point finding algorithm relied on the compass and its accuracy, and inaccurate compass values would cause a complete failure, slow runtimes, or less accurate results for the bundle adjustment.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.