US 2016/0103210 A1Published application

Laser radar device and radar image generating method

AssigneesMitsubishi Electric TOKKI Systems Corporation, Mitsubishi Electric Corporation

InventorsHideaki OCHIMIZU, Yuichi NISHINO, Hidenobu TSUJI, Nobuki KOTAKE, Masaharu IMAKI, Shumpei KAMEYAMA, Takashi SAITO

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Abstract

A system controller 16 determines whether the quality of either a distance image or a light intensity image satisfies reference quality, and, when the quality of either the distance image or the light intensity image dos not satisfy the reference quality, outputs a speed change command to lower a speed, an altitude change command to change a submarine altitude (depth), or the like to a navigation control unit 2, thereby changing a physical relative relation between a measurement plane 3 and a device in question. As an alternative, the system controller changes a beam scanning rate f, a beam divergence θ, or the like within limits at which the amount of variation in a spatial resolution does not exceed a permissible amount.

Claims18

Dependent claims

A laser radar device comprising:

a laser light transmitter and receiver to radiate laser light toward a measurement object while changing a beam scanning angle, and receive said laser light which is reflected by said measurement object and then returns thereto;
an elapsed time measurer to measure an elapsed time that elapses from a time when the laser light is radiated from said laser light transmitter and receiver to a time when the laser light is received by said laser light transmitter and receiver;
a distance calculator to calculate a distance from said device in question to said measurement object by using the elapsed time measured by said elapsed time measurer;
an imager to image the distance calculated by said distance calculator;
a quality determinator to determine whether image quality showing either a number of pixels each having a measured distance value or a degree of omission in measurement portions, in of an image generated by said imager, satisfies reference quality;
and
a relative relation changer to change at least one of a speed and an altitude of said device in question with respect to said measurement object when said quality determinator determines that the image quality does not satisfy the reference quality,
wherein said quality determinator determines whether an omission in measurement portions occurs in the image generated by said imager from a relation among a speed of a moving object in which said device in question is mounted, an altitude of said moving object, a beam divergence, and a beam scanning rate, and, when an omission in measurement portions occurs, determines that said image quality does not satisfy the reference quality.

5 more elements

A radar image generating method comprising:

a laser light transmission and reception processing step of a laser light transmitter and receiver radiating laser light toward a measurement object while changing a beam scanning angle, and receiving said laser light which is reflected by said measurement object and then returns thereto;
an elapsed time measurement processing step of an elapsed time measurer measuring an elapsed time that elapses from a time when the laser light is radiated in said laser light transmission and reception processing step to a time when the laser light is received in said laser light transmission and reception processing step;
a distance calculation processing step of a distance calculator calculating a distance from said device in question to said measurement object by using the elapsed time measured in said elapsed time measurement processing step;
an imaging step of an imager imaging the distance calculated in said distance calculation processing step;
a quality determination processing step of a quality determinator determining whether image quality showing either a number of pixels each having a measured distance value or a degree of omission in measurement portions, in an image generated in said imaging processing step, satisfies reference quality;
and
a relative relation change processing step of a relative relation changer changing at least one of a speed and an altitude of said device in question with respect to said measurement object when it is determined in said quality determination processing step that the image quality does not satisfy the reference quality,
wherein said quality determinator determines whether an omission in measurement portions occurs in the image generated by said imager from a relation among a speed of a moving object in which said device in question is mounted, an altitude of said moving object, a beam divergence, and a beam scanning rate, and, when an omission in measurement portions occurs, determines that said image quality does not satisfy the reference quality.

5 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 14/892,714Filed 28 May 2014
Priority: JP 2013-11323229 May 2013
Published: 14 Apr 2016
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification5 codes

G01S 7/497
Of systems according to group G01S17/00: means for monitoring or calibrating
G01S 7/4865
Receivers: time delay measurement, e.g. time-of-flight measurement, time of arrival measurement or determining the exact position of a peak
G01S 17/42
Systems determining position data of a target: simultaneous measurement of distance and other co-ordinates
G01S 17/89
Lidar systems specially adapted for specific applications: for mapping or imaging