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Position-locating method and apparatus including corrections for elevational changes
| Details |
Inventors: Levy, Nessim I.;
Assignee:
Primary Examiner: Teska; Kevin J.
Assistant Examiner: Louis-Jacques; Jacques
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Barish; Benjamin J.
A method and apparatus for navigation of a vehicle travelling over a terrain in which the changes in elevation of the vehicle are continuously measured, in addition to the distance and heading. The distance measurements are continuously corrected by the changes in elevation in determining the instantaneous location of the vehicle with respect to a known point. The approximate location can also be obtained from a satellite GPS (global positioning system). The measured elevation may also be compared with the elevation in reference data, such as data in a three-dimensional map of the area to prevent the accumulation of errors or to make the determined location more precise. |
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION An object of the present invention is to provide both an improved method and an improved apparatus for more precisely locating the position of a vehicle travelling over a terrain.
According to the present invention, there is provided a method and apparatus for determining the instantaneous location of a land vehicle travelling on a terrain, measuring the changes in elevation of the land vehicle as it travels on the terrain, and utilizing the measured changes in the elevation for correcting the measured approximate location in order to determine the precise instantaneous location of the land vehicle on the terrain.
This is done by storing reference data which includes changes in sign in the elevation slope of known locations in the terrain; and utilizing such reference data known locations, when changes in sign in the elevation slope of the measured data are encountered, for periodically correcting the instantaneous location of the land vehicle on the terrain.
It will thus be seen that the continuous measurement of the elevation, in addition to distance and heading of the vehicle while travelling over the terrain, provides an additional source of independent reference data and thereby improves the accuracy of the navigation system in two important respects: First, in the normal dead reckoning navigation system, the distance travelled by the vehicle is usually measured by the number of rotations of the vehicle wheels, or the like.
Thus, if the vehicle is travelling along an ascent or descent, the measured distance will be the actual length of the ascent or descent slope; this measured distance will therefore be greater than the horizontal component of the travelled distance, which is the relevant distance in the location determination, thereby introducing an error.
However, by continuously measuring changes in elevation, the computer can compensate for this source of error by calculating continuously the corresponding projected horizontal distance.
In addition, the reference data, such as a digitized three-dimensional map over which the vehicle travels, is also used in the described preferred embodiment for frequently correcting or recalibrating the computed position data with the reference data
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