Targeting
AssigneeTeleplan Forsberg Limited
InventorCharles Forsberg
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A targeting method comprising the steps of determining a bearing to a target from an observer using first and second independent techniques; comparing the bearings as determined by the first and second independent techniques and determining whether the bearings are accurate; and if the bearing is deemed to be accurate; measuring a range from the observer to the target; and calculating the position the target based on the verified bearing and range from the observer's position. The bearing can be measured by using a magnetometer, and cross-checked or verified using calculations based on three-dimensional satellite cartography data. The range to the target can be cross-checked, as can the position and viewpoint of the observer.
Claims20
A targeting method, comprising:
- determining a verified bearing to a target from an observer using first and second independent techniques to obtain a first bearing measurement and a second bearing measurement, respectively;
- comparing the first bearing measurement and the second bearing measurement as determined by the first and the second independent techniques to determine whether the verified bearing is accurate;
- and
- if the verified bearing is deemed to be accurate,
- measuring a range from the observer to the target;
- and
- calculating the position of the target based on the verified bearing and range from the observer's position characterised by:
- obtaining the first bearing measurement by using a laser range finder comprising an image capture device and a compass or
- magnetometer to measure a bearing to three or more features within an image captured by the image capture device;
- obtaining the second bearing measurement by using three-dimensional satellite cartography data including elevation data
- to identify features in the three-dimensional satellite cartography data that correspond to the said three or more features in the image captured by the image capture device,
- calculating the position, pan/tilt and roll angles of the laser range finder based on the subtended angles between the three or more features within the captured image and
- checking that the bearing measurements correspond by comparing the first bearing measurement determined by using the laser range finder with the second bearing measurement calculated from the three-dimensional satellite cartography data, to check that the difference between the two sets of data is smaller than a predetermined value.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.