Helmet mounted display adaptive predictive tracking

Claim 1

The method for supplementing the surrounding terrain visual information available to an air crew member comprising the steps of: sensing the features of said surrounding terrain with an electrical output signal generating directionally receptive energy transducer; presenting said output signal of said energy transducer as a visual image on a crew member disposed helmet mounted display; slaving said energy transducer receptive direction to said air crew member generated movements of said helmet; learning a pattern of helmet movements accomplished by said air crew member over a first predetermined past time interval ending with a present time instant; estimating from said learned pattern of past helmet movements, and a newly commenced movement, the movement expected in said commenced movement during a future period beginning with said present time instant and extending over a second predetermined time interval; generating from said estimating a future position electrical signal; and reducing the time delay between direct vision perceived surrounding terrain features and helmet mounted display representations of said features by commending looking direction change of said directionally receptive energy transducer in response to said future position electrical signals.

Claim 2

The method for supplementing the surrounding terrain visual information available to an air crew member comprising the steps of: sensing the features of said surrounding terrain with an electrical output signal generating directionally receptive energy transducer; presenting said output signal of said energy transducer as a visual image on a crew member disposed helmet mounted display; slaving said energy transducer receptive direction to said air crew member generated movements of said helmet; learning a pattern of helmet movements accomplished by said air crew member over a first predetermined past time interval ending with a present time instant; estimating from said learned pattern of past helmet movements, and a newly commenced movement, the movement expected in said commenced movement during a future period beginning with said present time instant and extending over a second predetermined time interval; generating from said estimating a future position electrical signal; and reducing the time delay between direct vision perceived surrounding terrain features and helmet mounted display representations of said features by commending looking direction change of said directionally receptive energy transducer in response to said future position electrical signals.

Claim 12

The method for using and estimating and using the near future looking direction of a helmet equipped aircraft crew member from successive previous helmet position signals comprising the steps of: generating from a current helmet position signal and an adaptive linear combiner, having a first parameter set conditioned least mean square algorithm, a first estimate of said current helmet position signal; subtracting said first estimate signal from said current helmet position signal to obtain a first estimated helmet position to actual helmet position combiner error signal; developing from said combiner error signal a new second parameter set for conditioning said adaptive linear combiner least mean square algorithm, said new parameter set having reduced combiner error signal generating capability with respect to said first parameter set; repeating said generating, subtracting, and developing steps with said second parameter set conditioning said combiner, and with each succeeding new parameter set conditioning said combiner, in an iterative sequence until said error signal conforms with a predetermined criteria therefor; computing with the final parameter set and a selected one of said current helmet position signal and a previous helmet position signal, an estimated future look direction signal for said crewmember helmet; and moving a helmet position controlled member in anticipating response to said estimated future look direction signal.

Claim 13

The method for using and estimating and using the near future looking direction of a helmet equipped aircraft crew member from successive previous helmet position signals comprising the steps of: generating from a current helmet position signal and an adaptive linear combiner, having a first parameter set conditioned least mean square algorithm, a first estimate of said current helmet position signal; subtracting said first estimate signal from said current helmet position signal to obtain a first estimated helmet position to actual helmet position combiner error signal; developing from said combiner error signal a new second parameter set for conditioning said adaptive linear combiner least mean square algorithm, said new parameter set having reduced combiner error signal generating capability with respect to said first parameter set; repeating said generating, subtracting, and developing steps with said second parameter set conditioning said combiner, and with each succeeding new parameter set conditioning said combiner, in an iterative sequence until said error signal conforms with a predetermined criteria therefor; computing with the final parameter set and a selected one of said current helmet position signal and a previous helmet position signal, an estimated future look direction signal for said crewmember helmet; and moving a helmet position controlled member in anticipating response to said estimated future look direction signal.

Claim 21

The method for reducing time delay between aircraft crewmember head movements and head position determined flight video images presented on a helmet mounted display of said crewmember comprising the steps of: sensing a sequence of successive head positions used by said crewmember during a past time interval up to a present time instant; conditioning weight vector coefficients in a learning prediction algorithm to successive of said past time interval head positions, said conditioning including minimizing a current position difference error, between head positions predicted by said learning prediction algorithm and currently sensed head positions, over a series of successive predictions during said sequence of past successive head positions; and reducing time delay between a future time instant attained new head position and presentation of a corresponding helmet mounted display flight video image by commencing formation of said new head position related flight video image prematurely and in response to a prediction of said new head position by said conditioned learning prediction algorithm.

Claim 22

The method for reducing time delay between aircraft crewmember head movements and head position determined flight video images presented on a helmet mounted display of said crewmember comprising the steps of: sensing a sequence of successive head positions used by said crewmember during a past time interval up to a present time instant; conditioning weight vector coefficients in a learning prediction algorithm to successive of said past time interval head positions, said conditioning including minimizing a current position difference error, between head positions predicted by said learning prediction algorithm and currently sensed head positions, over a series of successive predictions during said sequence of past successive head positions; and reducing time delay between a future time instant attained new head position and presentation of a corresponding helmet mounted display flight video image by commencing formation of said new head position related flight video image prematurely and in response to a prediction of said new head position by said conditioned learning prediction algorithm.