Automatic camera tracking for remote manipulators

Conference · Sun Jul 01 00:00:00 EDT 1984

OSTI ID:6481953

Stoughton, R S; Martin, H L; Bentz, R R

The problem of automatic camera tracking of mobile objects is addressed with specific reference to remote manipulators and using either fixed or mobile cameras. The technique uses a kinematic approach employing 4 x 4 coordinate transformation matrices to solve for the needed camera PAN and TILT angles. No vision feedback systems are used, as the required input data are obtained entirely from position sensors from the manipulator and the camera-positioning system. All hardware requirements are generally satisfied by currently available remote manipulator systems with a supervisory computer. The system discussed here implements linear plus on/off (bang-bang) closed-loop control with a +-2-deg deadband. The deadband area is desirable to avoid operator seasickness caused by continuous camera movement. Programming considerations for camera control, including operator interface options, are discussed. The example problem presented is based on an actual implementation using a PDP 11/34 computer, a TeleOperator Systems SM-229 manipulator, and an Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) camera-positioning system. 3 references, 6 figures, 2 tables.

• Research Organization: Tennessee Univ., Knoxville (USA); Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (USA)
• DOE Contract Number: AC05-84OR21400
• OSTI ID: 6481953
• Report Number(s): CONF-840793-5; ON: DE85001897
• Resource Relation: Conference: USDOE/ORNL/PNC national topical meeting on robotics and remote handling in hostile environments, Tokyo, Japan, 24 Jul 1984; Other Information: Portions are illegible in microfiche products
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

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