Wide-angle image pickup unit and measuring device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9733080-B2
Application number	US-201013393354-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 8, 2010
Priority date	Oct 2, 2009
Publication date	Aug 15, 2017
Grant date	Aug 15, 2017

Abstract

The invention provides a wide-angle image pickup unit, comprising at least two cameras ( 4 a and 4 b ) to take digital images, wherein the two cameras are arranged in such a manner that optical axes ( 11 a and 11 b ) of the two cameras cross perpendicularly each other on a same plane and images of wide field angle α with the crossing point O as a center enable to be acquired, and wherein parts of field angles of the two cameras are superimposed on each other and an overlapping portion is formed by the two images superimposed on each other, and stereoscopic measurement can be performed based on the two images of the overlapping portion.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A wide-angle image pickup unit, comprising a predetermined number of cameras to take digital images, wherein said predetermined number of cameras are arranged such that optical axes of said predetermined number of cameras cross each other on a same plane at one crossing point and said optical axes of said predetermined number of cameras are provided in radial direction at a predetermined angular interval so that total circumferential images with said crossing point as a center are acquired, wherein a field angle of each camera of said predetermined number of cameras is equal in size and is of a size such that end portions of field angles of adjacent cameras of said predetermined number of cameras are superimposed on each other and form overlapping portions, wherein end portions of adjacent overlapping portions are further superimposed on each other, and an angle formed by said optical axes of said adjacent cameras is 360° divided by said predetermined number of cameras, and the size is such that said overlapping portions are formed over a total circumference, wherein a total circumferential image is obtained using only said overlapping portions formed by said predetermined number of cameras and stereoscopic measurement is performed in an arbitrary direction and at an arbitrary position based on two images of said overlapping portion, and wherein said wide-angle image pickup unit further comprises a displacement amount measuring means and a calculation processing unit, wherein said calculation processing unit performs measurement of three-dimensional coordinates by said stereoscopic measurement in case an object to be measured is at a short distance and is present on said overlapping portion, and said calculation processing unit acquires three-dimensional coordinates of an object to be measured according to images taken from two different points and according to a distance between said two points obtained by said displacement amount measuring means in case an object to be measured is at a long distance.

2. A wide-angle image pickup unit according to claim 1 , wherein said calculation processing unit calculates three-dimensional coordinates of an object to be measured being present on said overlapping portion based on a distance between said two cameras, on a focal distance of the camera, and on the images superimposed on each other on said overlapping portion.

3. A wide-angle image pickup unit according to claim 2 , further comprising a display unit with a touch panel function, wherein three-dimensional coordinates of a designated position are determined by designating an arbitrary position on said overlapping portion displayed on said display unit.

4. A measuring system comprising a wide-angle image pickup unit, a displacement amount measuring means, and a calculation processing unit, wherein said wide-angle image pickup unit has a predetermined number of cameras to take digital images, and said predetermined number of cameras are arranged such that optical axes of said predetermined number of cameras cross each other on a same plane at one crossing point and said optical axes of said predetermined number of cameras are provided in radial direction at a predetermined angular interval such that total circumference images with said crossing point as a center are acquired and wherein a field angle of each camera of said predetermined number of cameras is equal in size and is of a size such that end portions of field angles of adjacent cameras of said predetermined number of cameras are superimposed on each other and form overlapping portions, wherein end portions of adjacent overlapping portions are further superimposed on each other, and an angle formed by said optical axes of said adjacent cameras of said predetermined number of cameras is 360° divided by said predetermined number of cameras and the size is such that said overlapping portions are formed over a total circumference, wherein a total circumferential image is obtained using only said overlapping portions formed by said predetermined number of cameras, wherein said calculation processing unit calculates three-dimensional coordinates of an object to be measured being present in an arbitrary direction and at an arbitrary position on said overlapping portion by stereoscopic measurement based on a distance between said adjacent cameras, on a focal distance of said camera, and on the images superimposed on each other on said overlapping portion, and wherein said calculation processing unit performs measurement of three-dimensional coordinates by said stereoscopic measurement in case an object to be measured is at a short distance and is present on said overlapping portion, and said calculation processing unit acquires three-dimensional coordinates of an object to be measured according to images taken from two different points and according to a distance between said two points obtained by said displacement amount measuring means in case an object to be measured is at a long distance.

5. A measuring system according to claim 4 , further comprising a display unit having a touch panel function, wherein three-dimensional coordinates at a designated position are measured by designating an arbitrary position on said overlapping portion displayed on said display unit.

6. A measuring system according claim 4 , wherein said displacement amount measuring means is a GPS unit, and said GPS unit, said wide-angle image pickup unit, and said calculation processing unit are installed on a mobile object, and a present position of the mobile object is measured by said GPS unit.

Assignees

• Ohtomo Fumio
• Kumagai Kaoru
• Otani Hitoshi
• Kk Topcon

Inventors

• Ohtomo Fumio
• Kumagai Kaoru
• Otani Hitoshi

Classifications

• G01C11/06 Primary

  by comparison of two or more pictures of the same area · CPC title

• G03B15/00

  Special procedures for taking photographs; Apparatus therefor · CPC title

• H04N13/0239

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H04N13/239

  using two two-dimensional [2D] image sensors having a relative position equal to or related to the interocular distance (H04N13/243 takes precedence) · CPC title