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US 2026/0210995 A1Published application
A method, system and computer program for event-based tracer tracking
AssigneeETH Zurich
InventorsThomas RÖSGEN, Alexander RUSCH
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AssigneeETH Zurich
InventorsThomas RÖSGEN, Alexander RUSCH
Estimating the term…
The invention relates to a method, system and computer program for determining a tracer flow in a measurement space, the method comprising the steps of: a) Injecting tracers at a first injection region into the measurement space with a tracer seeding device configured to inject tracers at an adjustable injection region in the measurement space, b) Recording the measurement space with two or more event-cameras, wherein each event-camera comprises a plurality of sensors configured to generate output data each time a sensor of the event camera senses a change in light intensity, wherein the output data comprises an information on a position of the sensor that sensed the change in light intensity, and a time of the change in light intensity, c) From the data of the event-cameras, determining with a processor for at least some of the injected tracers a trajectory in the measurement space, wherein each trajectory comprises at least an information on a time-resolved three-dimensional position of the tracer, wherein the determination of the trajectories is facilitated in real time, d) While executing steps b) and c), adjusting the injection region to at least a second injection region.
A method for determining a tracer flow in a measurement space, the method comprising the steps of:
The method according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the injection region is adjusted repeatedly.
The method according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the tracer seeding device comprises an injection nozzle at which the tracers are injected in to the measurement space, wherein at least the injection nozzle or the seeding device is handheld and/or hand-guided, such that the injection region is adjustable by moving the nozzle by hand to another region of the measurement space.
The method according to any of the preceding claims, wherein a density of trajectories is determined by the processor for one or more sub-volumes in the measurement space, and/or wherein the injection region is adjusted such that the density is equal or above a selected density for the one or more sub-volumes, particularly wherein the tracer seeding device is configured to receive control instructions from the control-computer to the effect that the tracer seeding device moves the nozzle to increase the density of the trajectories in the one or more sub-volumes.
The method according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the tracers comprise or consist of bubbles filled with air, particularly wherein a flow speed of the flow is higher than 50 km/h on average or at least at the injection region in the measurement space.
The method according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the tracers comprise multiple concurrent species of tracers selected from the group consisting of
The method according to any of the preceding claims, wherein from the data of each event-camera a two-dimensional location of the tracers in the measurement space is determined by the processor, wherein from the plurality of two-dimensional locations of each tracer and particularly by evaluating a temporal coincidence of the plurality of two-dimensional positions of each tracer, a three-dimensional position of each tracer is determined, particularly by means of a photogrammetry-method.
The method according to any of the preceding claims, wherein an object is arranged in the measurement space, wherein trajectories of tracers flowing around the object are determined.
A System for executing the method according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the system comprises at least the following components:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.