Patent ID: 9561869
Date: 2017-02-07
CPC Classifications: B64D,G01C

Claim:
1. An aircraft comprising: a modular camera array configured to, for each of a plurality of time-steps within a time period, for each of a plurality of modular cameras of the modular camera array, simultaneously generate an image of a respective portion of terrain, wherein the portions of terrain are such that the whole of a given area of terrain has been imaged by the end of the time period; one or more processors in each of the modular cameras arranged to identify one or more objects of interest in the images generated by the respective modular camera of the modular camera array; and select subset images of all the generated images such that the whole area of terrain is covered by the portions of the terrain in the images in the subset images; the subset images being the minimum number of images that provides that the whole area of the terrain is covered by the portions of the terrain in the subset images alone; whereby the whole area of the terrain is oversampled, having intermediate images generated between the subset images; wherein all the generated images equals the subset images plus the intermediate images; and for an image not in the subset images, if an object of interest is in that image, extract a sub-image containing the object of interest, that has not previously been stored, from that image; a camera assembly comprising: a fixture configured to be rotated relative to the aircraft about an axis; a mirror mounted on the fixture such that, if the fixture rotates, the mirror rotates, and rotatable relative to the fixture about a further axis, the further axis being substantially perpendicular to the axis; and an assembly camera mounted on the fixture such that the assembly camera has a substantially fixed position relative to the fixture, and arranged to detect electromagnetic radiation reflected by the mirror; wherein the camera assembly is configured to, responsive to a selection of a particular object of interest from the one or more identified objects of interest, be operated so as to rotate the fixture about the axis and/or rotate the mirror about the further axis such that a portion of terrain that the assembly camera is able to image includes the selected object of interest.