Patent ID: 11945123
Assignee: ALTEC INDUSTRIES, INC.
Field: Audio-visual technology (Electrical engineering)
Classification: CPC B  H  G | IPC B  G  H

Claim 5:
6. A method for providing real-time, sensory information associated with a remote location to a user to allow the user to remotely operate machinery, the method comprising:
receiving the real-time sensory information using a plurality of cameras disposed on a camera mount of a remote assembly in the remote location,
wherein the remote assembly is disposed at a boom distal end of a boom assembly and wherein the remote assembly further comprises:
an independently moveable camera-supporting robotic arm having a distal end to which the camera mount is coupled, the independently moveable camera-supporting robotic arm comprising a plurality of pivotable joints;
an electric remote power source powering the plurality of cameras and the independently moveable camera-supporting robotic arm;
a bonding cable having a first end coupled to the remote assembly and a second end configured to couple to an energized power line for electrically bonding the remote assembly to the energized power line;
a robotic arm for operating on the energized power line; and
a controller;

detecting a viewing angle and a viewing position of the user using at least one sensor disposed on a mountable display, wherein the mountable display is electrically isolated from the remote assembly and wherein a fiber optic cable communicatively couples the mountable display to the remote assembly;
responsive to detecting the viewing angle and the viewing position, transmitting a first control signal indicative of the viewing angle and a second control signal indicative of the viewing position to the controller via the fiber optic cable;
controlling movement of the camera mount based on the first control signal and movement of the independently moveable camera-supporting robotic arm based on the second control signal;
measuring the movement of the camera mount using a first accelerometer disposed on the camera mount and the movement of the independently moveable camera-supporting robotic arm using a second accelerometer disposed on the independently moveable camera-supporting robotic arm;
adjusting, via the controller, the movement of the camera mount based on the movement measured using the first accelerometer and the first control signal;
adjusting, via the controller, the movement of the independently moveable camera-supporting robotic arm based on the movement measured using the second accelerometer and the second control signal;
mitigating vibration of the remote assembly using at least one vibration damper to thereby prevent vibration from interfering with the plurality of cameras disposed on the camera mount;
transmitting, via the fiber optic cable, the real-time sensory information across an electrically insulated portion of the boom assembly to the mountable display,
wherein the real-time sensory information comprises:
a real-time visual representation of the remote location adapted to be outputted to the user on an image display of the mountable display, the real-time visual representation comprising a selected portion of a stitched image captured by the plurality of cameras disposed on the camera mount, wherein the selected portion of the stitched image is selected based on the viewing angle of the user.