The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jun. 12, 1990
Filed:
Oct. 04, 1988
Applicant:
Inventors:
Assignee:
Transitions Research Corporation, Danbury, CT (US);
Attorney:
Primary Examiner:
Assistant Examiner:
Int. Cl.
CPC ...
G06E / ; G01C / ; G06F / ;
U.S. Cl.
CPC ...
364449 ; 364436 ; 364450 ; 364460 ; 36442401 ; 364559 ; 180167 ; 318587 ;
Abstract
Apparatus and method which provides for the determination of a vehicle's orientation and position in an environment, such as a hallway, from an image of ceiling lights. A mobile robot 10 includes a camera 12 that is pitched up obliquely at an intermediate angle between a horizon and a zenith. The camera views a ceiling having one or more ceiling lights 16 which may be of rectangular shape and which are preferably aligned with an axis of the hallway. In that the lights present a pattern or alignment which is substantially parallel to or perpendicular to a long axis of the hallway the pattern is detected and processed to derive robot navigation information therefrom.