US-12617513-B2 - Outboard marine engine with integrated perception sensor

Abstract

An outboard engine unit for a marine vessel may, in addition to including an engine and a thrust unit, be outfitted with one or more perception sensors configured to capture images of a field of view, where the field of view maintains a fixed spatial relationship with the thrust direction in which the thrust unit is providing thrust for the marine vessel. Further, the outboard engine unit may further include an orientation sensor configured to sense the orientation of the thrust direction relative to the vessel.

Inventors

• Michael Gordon Johnson

Assignees

• SEA MACHINES ROBOTICS, INC.

Dates

Publication Date

20260505

Application Date

20230502

Claims (20)

1. 1 . An outboard engine unit for a marine vessel comprising: an engine for providing power to a thrust unit; a thrust unit for providing thrust to the vessel in a thrust direction; a perception sensor configured to capture images of a field of view, in which the field of view maintains a fixed spatial relationship with the thrust direction; an orientation sensor configured to sense the orientation of the thrust direction relative to the vessel; input/output circuitry operable to transmit the thrust direction and an image captured from the perception sensor to a computing resource; and an actuator operable to change the thrust direction or magnitude in response to a control signal, in which the input/output circuitry is further operable to receive the control signal from a remote location.
2. 2 . The engine unit of claim 1 , further comprising a plurality of perception sensors that have a collective field of view comprising 360 degrees around the marine vessel.
3. 3 . The engine unit of claim 1 , further comprising an actuator operable to change the thrust direction or magnitude in response to a control signal.
4. 4 . The engine unit of claim 1 , further comprising the computing resource, in which the computing resource includes an image processor operable to extract information from the image.
5. 5 . The engine unit of claim 4 , in which the computing resource is further configured to produce a control signal based in part on the extracted information.
6. 6 . The engine unit of claim 1 , further comprising inertial instruments configured to detect a motion of the vessel.
7. 7 . The engine unit of claim 1 , further comprising a geolocation unit operable to detect a location of the engine unit in a global coordinate system.
8. 8 . An outboard engine unit for a marine vessel comprising: an engine for providing power to a thrust unit; a thrust unit for providing thrust to the vessel in a thrust direction; a till mechanically coupled to thrust unit configured to allow a pilot of the vessel to change the thrust direction, thereby steering the vessel; and a perception sensor unit reception port for providing an electromechanical coupling of one or more perception sensors to the engine unit, the electromechanical coupling between the one or more perception sensors and the engine unit maintaining a field of view of each perception sensor in a fixed spatial relationship with the thrust direction.
9. 9 . The engine unit of claim 8 , further comprising an actuator operable to change the thrust direction or magnitude in response to a control signal.
10. 10 . The engine unit of claim 8 , further comprising input/output circuitry operable to transmit the thrust direction and an image captured from the perception sensor to a computing resource.
11. 11 . The engine unit of claim 10 , further comprising an actuator operable to change the thrust direction or magnitude in response to a control signal, in which the input/output circuitry is further operable to receive the control signal from a remote location.
12. 12 . The engine unit of claim 10 , further comprising the computing resource, in which the computing resource includes an image processor operable to extract information from the image.
13. 13 . The engine unit of claim 12 , in which the computing resource is further configured to produce a control signal based in part on the extracted information.
14. 14 . The engine unit of claim 8 , further comprising inertial instruments configured to detect a motion of the vessel.
15. 15 . The engine unit of claim 8 , further comprising a geolocation unit operable to detect a location of the engine unit in a global coordinate system.
16. 16 . An outboard engine unit for a marine vessel comprising: an engine for providing power to a thrust unit; a thrust unit for providing thrust to the vessel in a thrust direction; a till mechanically coupled to thrust unit configured to allow a pilot of the vessel to change the thrust direction, thereby steering the vessel; a perception sensor unit reception port for providing an electromechanical coupling of one or more perception sensors to the engine unit; input/output circuitry operable to transmit the thrust direction and an image captured from the perception sensor to a computing resource; and an actuator operable to change the thrust direction or magnitude in response to a control signal, in which the input/output circuitry is further operable to receive the control signal from a remote location.
17. 17 . The engine unit of claim 16 , in which the electromechanical coupling between the one or more perception sensors and the engine unit maintains a field of view of each perception sensor in a fixed spatial relationship with the thrust direction.
18. 18 . The engine unit of claim 16 , further comprising the computing resource, in which the computing resource includes an image processor operable to extract information from the image.
19. 19 . The engine unit of claim 18 , in which the computing resource is further configured to produce a control signal based in part on the extracted information.
20. 20 . The engine unit of claim 16 , further comprising inertial instruments configured to detect a motion of the vessel.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Pat. App. No. 63/337,418 filed on May 2, 2022, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein. BACKGROUND Along with conventional marine vehicles, autonomous, semi-autonomous, and remote-controlled marine vehicles are increasing in popularity. Among other technology, such marine vehicles beneficially employ one or more perception sensors to help visualize their surroundings. Such visualization can assist in certain autonomous navigation tasks, including but not limited to collision avoidance. An outboard engine unit is a popular system to provide thrust and steering capabilities to a relatively broad class of marine vehicles, including recreational or commercial vehicles about 15 feet to 65 feet in length. SUMMARY In an aspect, an outboard engine unit for a marine vessel disclosed herein may include: an engine for providing power to a thrust unit; a thrust unit for providing thrust to the vessel in a thrust direction; a perception sensor configured to capture images of a field of view, in which the field of view maintains a fixed spatial relationship with the thrust direction; and an orientation sensor configured to sense the orientation of the thrust direction relative to the vessel. Implementations may include one or more of the following features. The engine unit may include a plurality of perception sensors that have a collective field of view including 360 degrees around the marine vessel. The engine unit may include an actuator operable to change the thrust direction or magnitude in response to a control signal. The engine unit may include input/output circuitry operable to transmit the thrust direction and an image captured from the perception sensor to a computing resource. The engine unit may include an actuator operable to change the thrust direction or magnitude in response to a control signal, in which the input/output circuitry may be further operable to receive the control signal from a remote location. The engine unit may include a computing resource, in which the computing resource includes an image processor operable to extract information from the image. The computing resource may be further configured to produce a control signal based in part on the extracted information. The engine unit may include inertial instruments configured to detect a motion of the vessel. The engine unit may include a geolocation unit operable to detect a location of the engine unit in a global coordinate system. In an aspect, an outboard engine unit for a marine vessel disclosed herein may include: an engine for providing power to a thrust unit; a thrust unit for providing thrust to the vessel in a thrust direction; a till mechanically coupled to thrust unit configured to allow a pilot of the vessel to change the thrust direction, thereby steering the vessel; and a perception sensor unit reception port for providing an electromechanical coupling of one or more perception sensors to the engine unit. Implementations may include one or more of the following features. The mechanical coupling between one or more perception sensors and the engine unit may maintain a field of view of each perception sensor in a fixed spatial relationship with the thrust direction. The engine unit may include an actuator operable to change the thrust direction or magnitude in response to a control signal. The engine unit may include input/output circuitry operable to transmit the thrust direction and an image captured from the perception sensor to a computing resource. The engine unit may include an actuator operable to change the thrust direction or magnitude in response to a control signal, in which the input/output circuitry may be further operable to receive the control signal from a remote location. The engine unit may include a computing resource, in which the computing resource includes an image processor operable to extract information from the image. The computing resource may be further configured to produce a control signal based in part on the extracted information. The engine unit may include inertial instruments configured to detect a motion of the vessel. The engine unit may include a geolocation unit operable to detect a location of the engine unit in a global coordinate system. These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present teachings will become better understood with reference to the following description, examples, and appended claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The foregoing and other objects, features and advantages of the devices, systems, and methods described herein will be apparent from the following description of particular embodiments thereof, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. The drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating the principles of the devices, systems, and methods described herein. In the drawings, like