US 12,254,568 B2
System and method for collecting and georeferencing 3d geometric data associated with a GPS-denied environment
L. Douglas Baker, Pittsburgh, PA (US); Christopher J. Brown, Acme, PA (US); Matthew A. Csencsits, Pittsburgh, PA (US); and Scott M. Thayer, Pittsburgh, PA (US)
Assigned to Mine Vision Systems, Inc., Pittsburgh, PA (US)
Filed by Mine Vision Systems, Inc., Pittsburgh, PA (US)
Filed on Mar. 7, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/653,866.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/158,035, filed on Mar. 8, 2021.
Prior Publication US 2022/0284671 A1, Sep. 8, 2022
Int. Cl. G06T 17/05 (2011.01); G01C 15/00 (2006.01); G01V 8/02 (2006.01)
CPC G06T 17/05 (2013.01) [G01C 15/002 (2013.01); G01V 8/02 (2013.01)] 26 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A system for georeferencing three-dimensional (3D) geometric data, the system comprising:
an apparatus couplable to a mobile platform, the apparatus comprising:
a processing circuit;
a range sensor to acquire depth data of a subterranean, global positioning system (GPS)-denied environment, the range sensor communicably couplable with the processing circuit; and
a camera to acquire imaging data of the subterranean, GPS-denied environment, the camera communicably couplable with the processing circuit; and
a computing system communicably couplable with the apparatus, the computing system comprising:
a second processing circuit;
a 3D generator module communicably couplable with the second processing circuit and configured to generate a digital 3D model of the subterranean, GPS-denied environment based on the depth data;
a 3D survey control generator module communicably couplable with the second processing circuit and configured to:
identify, in the imaging data, a survey control point, wherein the survey control point comprises a visually-identifiable mark in the subterranean, GPS-denied environment captured by the camera, and wherein the survey control point has been associated with a coordinate location within a subterranean coordinate system; and
generate a 3D digital anchor within the digital 3D model of the subterranean, GPS-denied environment, wherein the 3D digital anchor corresponds to the identified survey control point; and
a georeferencing module communicably couplable with the second processing circuit and configured to apply one or more non-rigid transformations to the digital 3D model of the subterranean, GPS-denied environment to register the digital 3D model generated based on the depth data acquired by the range sensor to the subterranean coordinate system based on the coordinate location of the survey control point identified in the imaging data of the subterranean, GPS-denied environment captured by the camera.