Light Weight Small Volume Stereoscopic Visual Sensors for Telepresence on Robotic Rotorcraft Research Vehicles

The Department of Defense is actively pursuing the development of Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROV). Visual feedback provided to the operator is a major component required for the successful control of the ROV. The proposed approach utilizes dual units of a patented TRI imaging system, Omniview TM, in conjunction with a helmet tracking system to create a stereo image representation of the remote environment. A wide angle (180 degrees) image is used as the input and portions are displayed stereoscopically based on the head position of the operator. The Omniview approach uses a composite video camera and wide angle lens to capture the image and then transforms the image to perform pan, tilt, and rotation without any mechanical movement minimizing payload size and weight. As a result, this omnidirectional viewing system can be inserted into confined areas such as existing ROV's and provide visual feedback not possible with other approaches. Advantages of this approach in remote viewing applications include miniaturization, cost reduction, multiple image delivery from a single camera, fast response, high resolution, and greater reliability. Since no actuators are used, the approach can be miniaturized and hardened to provide an effective solution to remote viewing applications. The operator will be fitted with a helmet tracking system which will be utilized to control the pan, tilt, and rotation functions of the specialized electronics. This effort will address through design trade-off studies, the specific issues associated with the Free Flight Rotorcraft Vehicle (FFRRV) including integration of the operator helmet tracking system and the additional electronics required for the stereovision pan, tilt and rotate.