CSE 477 -- Video Imaged Spatial Positioning Project

Preliminary Design Package
    Introduction
    Project Design
    Project Requirements
    Parts List
    Design Analysis
    Test Plans
    Design Issues
    Technical References
    Powerpoint Presentation
    Word Format
    Group H Design Review
    Design Review (Word)

Final Design Report

Product Brochure

Final Project Report

Introduction

In many situations, it is useful to know the location of a point in space relative to some fixed reference frame. For example, a landscape architect may need to mark a specific height above a point in a yard. Another example is building contractors who need careful surveys to layout the exact location of the important points of a construction. Although there is a need for this kind of spatial data, current techniques are difficult and tedious. Surveyors need specialized training and expensive equipment to obtain an accurate spatial coordinate. The difficulty involved in these traditional techniques increases significantly if you wish to find the location of objects that have irregular shapes or are out of reach. Using traditional surveying techniques, obtaining more sophisticated spatial data, such as tracking the coordinates of a moving object, is nearly impossible.

It would be ideal in these situations if there were a way to know the exact location of a point instantly. For example, pointing at an object with a laser pen or holding up a location flare would enable us produce the X, Y, Z coordinates of the indicated location without having to do any additional measurements or calculations.

The goal of our design, the Video Imaged Spatial Positioning System (VISPS), is to provide 3-D coordinate information using the concept of stereo-vision. By finding a laser marker in image frames captured from two cameras arranged side-by-side, and applying simple trigonometry, we will be able to determine the X, Y, Z coordinates of the laser marker relative to the two-camera system.

Not only will VISPS simplify the task of acquiring spatial coordinates; it will also extend the capability beyond what traditional techniques can provide. Digital hardware solutions intrinsically have an advantage over mechanical designs because data is easily fed to computers for quick analysis. The high frame rates of the cameras and the ability to do rapid mathematical calculations in hardware means that VISPS will be able to capture the coordinates of a moving point in rapid succession. For example, the laser, used either as a flare or a pointer, could actually be used to draw arbitrary shapes in space or against other objects. Since we will be tracking a laser dot, finding the coordinates of points that are out of reach will be trivially easy by simply pointing at the object with the laser.