NASA has granted two nonexclusive patent license agreements for imaging
software technologies for application in commercial markets.
The software programs Fuzzy Reasoning Edge Detection (FRED); Fuzzy Reasoning
Adaptive Thresholding (FRAT); and Pose Invariant Pattern Recognition (PIPR)
were developed at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
FRED is used to detect edges in noisy images and track unfamiliar objects in
video and film. FRED is also used to track foreign object debris in launch
videos and was a key component of the analysis in the investigation of the
Space Shuttle Columbia accident.
The FRAT system transforms faded images into clearer, readable ones. It is
faster and more reliable that most imaging software. NASA also uses FRAT to
track debris during launch, information that was critical to the Columbia
investigation.
The PIPR software program is used to search through large amounts of data to
determine links and patterns. The software also investigates what has
already occurred and can predict what will occur. PIPR requires no advance
knowledge of the characteristics of images to be analyzed and provides an
explicit indicator-of-match.
NASA signed an agreement with Barton Medical Imaging, New Haven, Conn., for
the software programs FRED, FRAT, and PIPR. Barton, a small high-tech
company, plans on using the programs to enhance the performance, processing
time and range of applications in their medical imaging systems.
An agreement was also signed with Zeus Technologies, Celebration, Fla., for
the FRED and FRAT programs. Zeus will use the programs in the development of
medical imaging devices that will assist in the real-time evaluation and
classification of masses present in the images.
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