An Operator Interface for a Robot-Mounted, 3D Camera System: Project Pioneer

The purpose of Project Pioneer is to develop an exploratory robot capable of creating a three-dimensional photo-realistic map of the inside of the damaged Chornobyl Nuclear Reactor, measure the environmental and radioactive conditions, and collect samples of concrete from the physical structure to determine its mechanical stability. This paper describes the Virtual Reality interface for Pioneer's three-dimensional mapping system. This interface addresses a wide variety of technical challenges, including several that are unique to the hostile Chornobyl environment. The Chornobyl Mapping System provides two modules: Acquisition and Analysis. The Acquisition module (CMAP Acquire) allows the operator to collect a series of images for later processing into a threedimensional mesh. CMAP Acquire also provides a suite of tools that assist the operator in collecting useful data, including an expert system for image analysis, a graphical overlay for distance estimation, and a three-dimensi...

• Type: Conference
• Year: 1999
• Where: VR
• Authors: Fitzgerald Steele Jr., Geb W. Thomas, Theodore Blackmon
• Keywords: Chornobyl, CMAP Acquire, Three-dimensional, Virtual Reality, VR 1999