US 12,440,995 B1
Virtual barriers for remotely operated equipment
Jonathan Westin Sykes, Gower, MO (US); Timothy J. Mourlam, Shawnee, KS (US); and Robert Nichols, Saint Joseph, MO (US)
Assigned to Altec Industries, Inc., Birmingham, AL (US)
Filed by Altec Industries, Inc., Birmingham, AL (US)
Filed on Dec. 3, 2024, as Appl. No. 18/967,103.
Int. Cl. B25J 9/16 (2006.01); B25J 13/08 (2006.01); G02B 27/01 (2006.01); G06F 3/01 (2006.01); G06V 10/70 (2022.01)
CPC B25J 9/1689 (2013.01) [B25J 9/1666 (2013.01); B25J 13/089 (2013.01); G02B 27/017 (2013.01); G06F 3/016 (2013.01); G06V 10/70 (2022.01)] 18 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method of establishing virtual barriers within a control system of a remotely operated robotic device, the remotely operated robotic device disposed in a remote operating environment remote from an operator, the method comprising:
identifying at least one position within the remote operating environment, the at least one position associated with an object in the remote operating environment;
generating at least one virtual barrier associated with the object within the control system of the remotely operated robotic device based on the at least one position within the remote operating environment,
wherein the at least one virtual barrier comprises a radius determined based at least in part on a voltage of the object;
generating an alert in response to a proximity of a portion of the remotely operated robotic device to the at least one virtual barrier; and
responsive to the proximity of the portion of the remotely operated robotic device to the at least one virtual barrier, selectively displaying a visual representation of the at least one virtual barrier to the operator as an overlay displayed over a real-time image of the remote operating environment within an operator interface of a remote control device.