Methods and apparatus for runway segmentation using sensor analysis

1. A system for determining whether a region of interest (ROI) includes a runway having a plurality of corners, comprising:

a camera configured to capture an image of the ROI;

an analysis module coupled to the camera and configured to generate a binary large object (BLOB) of at least a portion of the ROI, the analysis module configured to stretch a contrast of the captured image to create a range of intensity values in the captured image;

a synthetic vision system (SVS) including a template of the runway; and

a segmentation module coupled to the analysis module and the SVS, the segmentation module configured to determine if the ROI includes the runway based on a comparison of the template and the BLOB.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the analysis module is further configured to identify a position for each corner on the BLOB and form a polygon on the BLOB based on the position of each corner.

3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the analysis module is further configured to divide the BLOB into a left portion containing a first upper section and a first lower section, and a right portion containing a second upper section and a second lower section.

4. The system of claim 3 , wherein the segmentation module is configured to identify a first slope from a corner in the first upper section to a corner in the first lower section, a second slope from a corner in the second upper section to a corner in the second lower section, or both.

5. The system of claim 4 , wherein the segmentation module is further configured to:

compare the first slope with a third slope on a left side of the template, comparing the second slope with a fourth slope on a right side of the template, or both; and

determine that the BLOB represents the runway if the first slope matches the third slope within a predetermined error, if the second slope matches the fourth slope within the predetermined error, or both.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the analysis module, in generating the BLOB, is further configured to:

filter intensity values that are outside of the range of intensity values; and

determine a shape of the BLOB based on the template.

7. The system of claim 6 , wherein the segmentation module is further configured to:

determine a center of mass of the BLOB based on the template;

adjust one or more boundaries of the template; and

filter pixels in the BLOB that lie outside of the adjusted one or more boundaries of the template.

8. A method for determining whether a binary large object (BLOB) represents a runway having a plurality of corners, comprising the steps of:

generating a BLOB from a visual image of the runway, wherein generating the BLOB comprises stretching a contrast of the captured image to create a range of intensity values in the captured image;

identifying a position for each corner on the BLOB;

forming a polygon on the BLOB based on the position of each corner; and

determining that the BLOB represents the runway based on a comparison of a template of the runway and the polygon; and

rendering an enhanced image of the runway within a display device.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the identifying step further comprises the step of dividing the BLOB into a left portion containing a first upper section and a first lower section, and a right portion containing a second upper section and a second lower section.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the forming step further comprises the steps of:

identifying a first slope from a corner in the first upper section to a corner in the first lower section; and

identifying a second slope from a corner in the second upper section to a corner in the second lower section.

11. The method of claim 10 , further comprising the steps of:

comparing the first slope with a third slope on a left side of the template; and

comparing the second slope with a fourth slope on a right side of the template, wherein the determining step comprises the step of determining that the BLOB represents the runway if the first slope matches the third slope within a predetermined error, if the second slope matches the fourth slope within the predetermined error, or both.

12. The method of claim 8 , wherein the step of generating the BLOB further comprises the steps of:

capturing an image of a region of interest;

filtering intensity values that are outside of the range of intensity values; and

determining a shape of the BLOB based on the template.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein forming the polygon comprises the steps of:

determining a center of mass of the BLOB;

adjusting one or more boundaries of the template; and

filtering pixels in the BLOB that lie outside of the adjusted one or more boundaries of the template.

14. A computer-readable medium including instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method for determining whether a binary large object (BLOB) represents a runway having a plurality of corners, the method comprising the steps of:

generating the BLOB, wherein generating the BLOB comprises:

capturing an image of a region of interest, and

stretching a contrast of the captured image to create a range of intensity values in the captured image;

identifying a position for each corner on the BLOB;

forming a polygon on the BLOB based on the position of each corner; and

determining that the BLOB represents the runway based on a comparison of a template of the runway and the polygon.

15. The computer-readable medium of claim 14 , further including instructions that cause the processor to perform the step of dividing the BLOB into a left portion containing a first upper section and a first lower section, and a right portion containing a second upper section and a second lower section.

16. The computer-readable medium of claim 15 , further including instructions that cause the processor to perform the steps of:

identifying a first slope from a corner in the first upper section to a corner in the first lower section; and

identifying a second slope from a corner in the second upper section to a corner in the second lower section.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 16 , further including instructions that cause the processor to perform the steps of:

comparing the first slope with a third slope on a left side of the template;

comparing the second slope with a fourth slope on a right side of the template; and

determining that the BLOB represents the runway if the first slope matches the third slope within a predetermined error, if the second slope matches the fourth slope within the predetermined error, or both.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 14 , further including instructions that cause the processor to perform the step of generating a BLOB, wherein the instructions for generating the BLOB further comprises instructions that cause the processor to perform the steps of:

filtering intensity values that are outside of the range of intensity values; and

determining a shape of the BLOB based on the template.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 18 , wherein the instructions for forming the polygon comprise instructions that cause the processor to perform the steps of:

determining a center of mass of the BLOB;

adjusting one or more boundaries of the template; and

filtering pixels in the BLOB that lie outside of the adjusted one or more boundaries of the template.