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US 12,601,667 B2Granted
Automated turf testing apparatus and system for using same
AssigneeBiomechanics Consulting and Research, LLC
InventorsJeff Crandall, Edward Meade Spratley, Philipe Aldahir, Zack Sutton, Steven Sutton
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An apparatus and method for inspection of at least one of grass, artificial turf, infill, or dirt, on a surface, using optical photographic images from a camera and three-dimensional (“3D”) depth scans using the camera and one or more laser, to create a mask to distinguish aspects of the surface, so that the surface can be measured and analyzed.
Claims24
A computer-implemented method for inspecting a ground surface, the method comprising:
- capturing, via at least one camera, an optical image of the ground surface, wherein the ground surface includes at least one of:
- grass, artificial turf, infill, and dirt, and the optical image includes at least one of a photographic image and a video image;
- capturing, via at least one laser, a three-dimensional (“3D”) depth scan of the ground surface;
- and
- via a computing processor, in response to executable instructions:
- electronically combining the optical image of the ground surface and the 3D depth scan of the ground surface;
- sampling or recording one or more color, one or more depth, or a combination of the one or more color and the one or more depth, in a portion of or all of the optical image, the 3D depth scan, or a combination of the optical image and the 3D depth scan;
- creating a mask using the sampling or recording of the one or more color, the one or more depth, or the combination of the one or more color and the one or more depth, in the portion or all of the optical image, the 3D depth scan, or a combination of the optical image and the 3D depth scan;
- using the mask to distinguish (a) fiber of at least one of the grass or the artificial turf from (b) at least one of the infill or the dirt;
- and
- determining, using the optical image or the 3D depth scan, one or more lay direction of the grass or the artificial turf, in both a two-dimensional optical space and a 3D depth space.
8 more elements
A computer-implemented method for inspecting a ground surface, the method comprising:
- capturing, via at least one camera, an optical image of the ground surface, wherein the ground surface includes at least one of:
- grass, artificial turf, infill, and dirt, and the optical image includes at least one of a photographic image and a video image;
- capturing, via at least one laser, a three-dimensional (“3D”) depth scan of the ground surface;
- and
- via a computing processor, in response to executable instructions:
- electronically combining the optical image of the ground surface and the 3D depth scan of the ground surface;
- sampling or recording one or more color, one or more depth, or a combination of the one or more color and the one or more depth, in a portion of or all of the optical image, the 3D depth scan, or a combination of the optical image and the 3D depth scan;
- creating a mask using the sampling or recording of the one or more color, the one or more depth, or the combination of the one or more color and the one or more depth, in the portion or all of the optical image, the 3D depth scan, or a combination of the optical image and the 3D depth scan;
- using the mask to distinguish (a) fiber of at least one of the grass or the artificial turf from (b) at least one of the infill or the dirt;
- electronically measuring or analyzing, or both electronically measuring and analyzing, at least one of the grass, the artificial turf, the infill, and the dirt;
- and
- wherein the one or more color comprises two different colors, which can be automatically selected based on dispersion from the at least one laser depending on at least one of ground surface color and ground surface sheen.
9 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.