U.S. patent application number 17/479339 was filed with the patent office on 2022-01-06 for obstacle-avoidance control method for unmanned aerial vehicle (uav), flight controller and uav.
The applicant listed for this patent is SZ DJI TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD.. Invention is credited to Chunming WANG, Junxi WANG, Guang YAN, Yao ZOU.
Application Number | 20220004201 17/479339 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | |
Filed Date | 2022-01-06 |
United States Patent
Application |
20220004201 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
ZOU; Yao ; et al. |
January 6, 2022 |
OBSTACLE-AVOIDANCE CONTROL METHOD FOR UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLE
(UAV), FLIGHT CONTROLLER AND UAV
Abstract
An obstacle-avoidance control method comprises acquiring a
distance between an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and a front
object in a flying direction of the UAV; and controlling a flying
altitude of the UAV according to the distance between the UAV and
the front object, including in response to determining that the
distance between the UAV and the front object is smaller than a
safety distance, adjusting a flight trajectory of the UAV or
controlling the UAV to stop flying in the flying direction.
Inventors: |
ZOU; Yao; (Shenzhen, CN)
; WANG; Chunming; (Shenzhen, CN) ; WANG;
Junxi; (Shenzhen, CN) ; YAN; Guang; (Shenzhen,
CN) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
SZ DJI TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD. |
Shenzhen |
|
CN |
|
|
Appl. No.: |
17/479339 |
Filed: |
September 20, 2021 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
|
|
|
|
|
|
Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
16417074 |
May 20, 2019 |
11126202 |
|
|
17479339 |
|
|
|
|
PCT/CN2016/106832 |
Nov 22, 2016 |
|
|
|
16417074 |
|
|
|
|
International
Class: |
G05D 1/04 20060101
G05D001/04; G05D 1/10 20060101 G05D001/10; G08G 5/00 20060101
G08G005/00; G08G 5/04 20060101 G08G005/04 |
Claims
1. An obstacle-avoidance control method comprising: acquiring a
distance between an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and a front
object in a flying direction of the UAV; and controlling a flying
altitude of the UAV according to the distance between the UAV and
the front object, including: in response to determining that the
distance between the UAV and the front object is smaller than a
safety distance, adjusting a flight trajectory of the UAV or
controlling the UAV to stop flying in the flying direction.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein: the safety distance is a first
safety distance; and controlling the flying altitude of the UAV
according to the distance between the UAV and the front object
further includes: in response to determining that the distance
between the UAV and the front object is smaller than a second
safety distance and greater than the first safety distance,
increasing the flying altitude of the UAV, the second safety
distance being greater than the first safety distance.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein increasing the flying altitude of
the UAV includes: increasing the flying altitude of the UAV to
increase the distance between the UAV and the front object to be
greater than or equal to the second safety distance.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein adjusting the flight trajectory
of the UAV includes at least one of: adjusting a heading angle of
the UAV to enable the flight trajectory of the UAV to bypass the
front object; or increasing the flying altitude of the UAV to
enable the flight trajectory of the UAV to pass over the front
object.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein controlling the UAV to stop
flying in the flying direction includes: controlling the UAV to be
in a hovering state.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein controlling the flying altitude
of the UAV according to the distance between the UAV and the front
object further includes at least one of: simultaneously increasing
the flying altitude of the UAV and controlling the UAV to continue
flying in the flying direction; or increasing the flying altitude
of the UAV and controlling the UAV to stop flying in the flying
direction.
7. The method of claim 6, wherein controlling the UAV to stop
flying in the flying direction includes: controlling the UAV to be
in a hovering state.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein acquiring the distance between
the UAV and the front object in the flying direction of the UAV
includes: acquiring the distance between the UAV and the front
object in the flying direction of the UAV via a detecting device
carried by the UAV.
9. The method of claim 8, wherein: the detecting device includes at
least one of a radar sensor, an ultrasonic sensor, a time of flight
(TOF) ranging sensor, a visual sensor, or a laser sensor.
10. An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) comprising: a fuselage; a
power system mounted at the fuselage and configured to provide
flight power; and a flight controller in communication with the
power system to control the UAV, including one or more processors
configured to, individually or cooperatively, execute instructions
to: acquire a distance between the UAV and a front object in a
flying direction of the UAV; and control a flying altitude of the
UAV according to the acquired distance between the UAV and the
front object, including: in response to determining that the
distance between the UAV and the front object is smaller than a
safety distance, adjusting a flight trajectory of the UAV or
control the UAV to stop flying in the flying direction.
11. The UAV of claim 10, wherein: the safety distance is a first
safety distance; and the one or more processors are further
configured to execute the instructions to control the flying
altitude of the UAV according to the acquired distance between the
UAV and the front object by: determining whether the distance
between the UAV and the front object is smaller than a second
safety distance and greater than the first safety distance, and in
response to determining that the distance between the UAV and the
front object is smaller than the second safety distance and greater
than the first safety distance, increasing the flying altitude of
the UAV to increase the distance between the UAV and the front
object, the second safety distance being greater than the first
safety distance.
12. The UAV of claim 11, wherein the one or more processors are
further configured to execute the instructions to increase the
flying altitude of the UAV to increase the distance between the UAV
and the front object by: increasing the flying altitude of the UAV
to increase the distance between the UAV and the front object to be
greater than or equal to the first safety distance.
13. The UAV of claim 10, wherein the one or more processors are
further configured to execute the instructions to adjust the flight
trajectory of the UAV by performing at least one of: adjusting a
heading angle of the UAV to enable the flight trajectory of the UAV
to bypass the front object; or increasing the flying altitude of
the UAV to enable the flight trajectory of the UAV to pass over the
front object.
14. The UAV of claim 10, wherein the one or more processors are
further configured to execute the instructions to control the UAV
to stop flying in the flying direction by: controlling the UAV to
be in a hovering state.
15. The UAV of claim 10, wherein the one or more processors are
further configured to execute the instructions to control the
flying altitude of the UAV according to the acquired distance
between the UAV and the front object by performing at least one of:
simultaneously increasing the flying altitude of the UAV and
control the UAV to continue flying in the flying direction; or
increasing the flying altitude of the UAV and control the UAV to
stop flying in the flying direction.
16. The UAV of claim 15, wherein the one or more processors are
further configured to execute the instructions to control the UAV
to stop flying in the flying direction by: controlling the UAV to
be in a hovering state.
17. The UAV of claim 10, further comprising: a detecting device
mounted at the fuselage and communicating with the flight
controller, wherein the detecting device is configured to: detect
the distance between the UAV and the front object in the flying
direction of the UAV, and transmit the distance between the UAV and
the front object in the flying direction of the UAV to the one or
more processors.
18. The UAV of claim 17, wherein: the detecting device includes at
least one of a radar sensor, an ultrasonic sensor, a time of flight
(TOF) ranging sensor, a visual sensor, or a laser sensor.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation of application Ser. No.
16/417,074, filed on May 20, 2019, which is a continuation
application of International Application No. PCT/CN2016/106832,
filed on Nov. 22, 2016, the entire contents of both of which are
incorporated herein by reference.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The present disclosure relates to the field of unmanned
aerial vehicles (UAV) and, more particularly, to an
obstacle-avoidance control method for UAV, a flight controller, and
an UAV thereof.
BACKGROUND
[0003] Currently, an unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) is often
equipped with a radar. The working altitude of agricultural plant
protection UAVs is often below 4 meters and, moreover, due to
complicated working environment in farms, an obstacle-avoidance
radar becomes a necessary equipment for the agricultural plant
protection UAVs.
[0004] However, agricultural plant protection UAVs sometimes work
in hills, slopes, terraces and other environments. Due to the
complexity of terrain such as hills, slopes and terraces, when the
agricultural plant protection UAVs fly forward at the same
altitude, the obstacles in front of the UAV detected by the radar
may be high hills, slopes or ground of terraces. If the ground in
front of the agricultural plant protection UAVs is used as an
obstacle to trigger the obstacle-avoidance function of the UAVs,
for example, stopping flying forward, the agricultural plant
protection UAVs may not operate normally in the hills, slopes and
terraces.
SUMMARY
[0005] In accordance with the disclosure, there is provided an
obstacle-avoidance control method. The method comprises acquiring a
distance between an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and a front
object in a flying direction of the UAV; and controlling a flying
altitude of the UAV according to the distance between the UAV and
the front object.
[0006] Also in accordance with the disclosure, there is provided an
UAV. The UAV comprises a fuselage; a power system mounted at the
fuselage and configured to provide flight power; and a flight
controller in communication with the power system to control the
UAV. The flight controller includes one or more processors which
work individually or cooperatively. The one or more processors are
configured to acquire a distance between the UAV and a front object
in a flying direction of the UAV, and control a flying altitude of
the UAV according to the acquired distance between the UAV and the
front object.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] FIG. 1 is a flow chart of an obstacle-avoidance control
method for unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) according to an embodiment
of the disclosure.
[0008] FIG. 2 is an application scenario of an obstacle-avoidance
control method for UAV according to an embodiment of the
disclosure.
[0009] FIG. 3 is an application scenario of an obstacle-avoidance
control method for UAV according to an embodiment of the
disclosure.
[0010] FIG. 4 is an application scenario of an obstacle-avoidance
control method for UAV according to an embodiment of the
disclosure.
[0011] FIG. 5 is an application scenario of an obstacle-avoidance
control method for UAV according to an embodiment of the
disclosure.
[0012] FIG. 6 is an application scenario of an obstacle-avoidance
control method for UAV according to an embodiment of the
disclosure.
[0013] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of adjusting a flying
direction according to an embodiment of the disclosure.
[0014] FIG. 8 is an application scenario of an obstacle-avoidance
control method for UAV according to an embodiment of the
disclosure.
[0015] FIG. 9 is an application scenario of an obstacle-avoidance
control method for UAV according to an embodiment of the
disclosure.
[0016] FIG. 10 is a structural diagram of an UAV according to an
embodiment of the disclosure.
[0017] FIG. 11 is a structural diagram of an UAV according to an
embodiment of the disclosure.
DESCRIPTION OF MAIN COMPONENTS AND REFERENCE NUMERALS
TABLE-US-00001 [0018] Flying direction 1 Flying direction before an
adjustment 2 Flying direction after an adjustment 3 Obstacle 22
Current position 30 Flight track 31 UAV 100 Motor 107 Propeller 106
Electronic governor 117 Flight controller 118 Communication system
110 Supporting device 102 Imaging device 104 Ground station 112
Antenna 114 Electromagnetic wave 116 Obstacle-avoidance sensor 211
Altitude sensor 212
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS
[0019] Technical solutions of the present disclosure will be
described with reference to the drawings. It will be appreciated
that the described embodiments are some rather than all of the
embodiments of the present disclosure. Other embodiments conceived
by those having ordinary skills in the art on the basis of the
described embodiments without inventive efforts should fall within
the scope of the present disclosure.
[0020] As used herein, when a first component may be referred to as
"fixed" to a second component, it may be intended that the first
component may be directly mounted at the second component or may be
indirectly mounted at the second component via a third component
between them. When a first component may be referred to as
"connecting/connected" to a second component, it may be intended
that the first component may be directly connecting/connected to
the second component or may be indirectly connecting/connected to
the second component via a third component between them.
[0021] Unless otherwise defined, all the technical and scientific
terms used herein have the same or similar meanings as generally
understood by one of ordinary skill in the art. As described
herein, the terms used in the specification of the present
disclosure are intended to describe exemplary embodiments, instead
of limiting the present disclosure. The term "and/or" used herein
may include any suitable combination of one or more related items
listed.
[0022] Exemplary embodiments will be described with reference to
the accompanying drawings. In the situation where the technical
solutions described in the embodiments are not conflicting, they
can be combined.
[0023] The present discourse provides an obstacle-avoidance control
method for UAV. FIG. 1 is a flow chart of an obstacle-avoidance
control method for UAV according to an embodiment of the
disclosure. As shown in FIG. 1, the obstacle-avoidance control
method for UAV may comprise the following steps.
[0024] A distance between the UAV and a front object in a flying
direction of the UAV is acquired (S101). In the disclosed
embodiments, the UAV may be equipped with a detecting device for
detecting an object around the UAV. In particular, the detecting
device may detect the altitude of the UAV from the ground, and the
altitude and distance of the UAV from the ground in front of the
UAV. In one embodiment, the detecting device may detect the
distance between the UAV and a front object in the flying direction
of the UAV.
[0025] FIGS. 2-6 are application scenarios of an obstacle-avoidance
control method for UAV according to embodiments of the disclosure.
As shown in FIG. 2, the ground below the UAV may be a slope, and
the UAV may fly forward in a horizontal direction, as indicated by
an arrow 1. The present disclosure does not limit the specific
flying direction of the UAV. The detecting device 21 may detect
that in the horizontal direction the distance between the ground in
front of the detecting device and the detecting device is d, and in
the vertical direction the altitude of the detecting device from
the ground below is h. The distance d between the ground in front
of the detecting device and the detecting device may represent the
distance between the UAV and the front ground in the flying
direction of the UAV, and in the vertical direction the altitude h
of the detecting device from the ground below may represent the
altitude of the UAV from the ground below.
[0026] The detecting device may include at least one of a radar
sensor, an ultrasonic sensor, a time of flight (TOF) ranging
sensor, a visual sensor, or a laser sensor.
[0027] In the disclosed embodiments, the execution body of the
obstacle-avoidance control method may be a flight controller on the
UAV, and the flight controller may acquire the distance between the
front ground in the flying direction of the UAV and the UAV from
the detecting device.
[0028] Returning to FIG. 1, after the distance between the UAV and
the front object in the flying direction of the UAV is acquired, a
flying altitude of the UAV is controlled according to the acquired
distance between the UAV and the front object (S102).
[0029] As shown in FIG. 2, as the UAV flies forward, for example,
the UAV flies from a position A to a position B, the distance d
from the UAV to the front ground may be continuously reduced. When
the distance d from UAV at the position B to the front ground is
smaller than a preset first safety distance and greater than a
preset second safety distance, the flying altitude of the UAV at
the position B may be increased to reach a position C, as FIG. 3
shows. The first safety distance may be greater than the second
safety distance.
[0030] As shown in FIG. 3, as the flying altitude of the UAV
increases, the distance between the UAV and the front object may
increase. The UAV may arrive at the position C after increasing the
flying altitude at the position B, and the distance d1 from the UAV
at the position C to the front ground may be larger than the
distance from the UAV at the position B to the front ground.
Moreover, the greater the altitude of the UAV is increased at the
position B, i.e., the greater the altitude difference between the
position C and the position B, the greater the distance d1 between
the UAV and the front ground when the UAV arrives at the position
C. In one embodiment, the flight controller may control the UAV to
increase the flying altitude at the position B, to enable the
distance d1 from the UAV at the position C to the front ground to
be greater than or equal to the first safety distance.
[0031] As shown in FIG. 4, the ground below the UAV may be a
terrace, and the UAV may fly forward in the horizontal direction
indicated by the arrow 1. At the position A, the detecting device
21 may detect that in the horizontal direction the distance from
the ground in front of the detecting device (i.e., the front
ground) to the detection device is d, and in the vertical direction
the altitude from the ground below to the detection device is h. As
the UAV flies forward, for example, the UAV flies from a position A
to a position B, the distance d from the UAV to the front ground
may be continuously reduced. When the distance d from the UAV at
the position B to the front ground is smaller than the preset first
safety distance and greater than the preset second safety distance,
the flying altitude of the UAV at the position B may be increased
to reach a position C as FIG. 5 shows. The first safety distance
may be greater than the second safety distance.
[0032] As shown in FIG. 5, as the flying altitude of the UAV
increases, the distance between the UAV and the front object may
also increase. The UAV may arrive at the position C after
increasing the flying altitude at the position B, and the distance
d1 from the UAV at the position C to the front ground may be larger
than the distance from the UAV at the position B to the front
ground. Moreover, the greater the altitude of the UAV is increased
at the position B, i.e., the greater the altitude difference
between the position C and the position B, the greater the distance
d1 between the UAV and the front ground when the UAV arrives at the
position C. In one embodiment, the flight controller may control
the UAV to increase the flying altitude at the position B, to
enable the distance d1 from the UAV at the position C to the front
ground to be greater than or equal to the first safety
distance.
[0033] In the disclosed embodiments, the UAV may be an agricultural
UAV.
[0034] In the disclosed embodiments, the flying altitude of the UAV
may be controlled based on the distance between the UAV and the
front object. As the flying altitude of the UAV increases, the
distance between the UAV and the front object may increase. When
the UAV flies forward, and the distance between the UAV and the
front object is smaller than a safety distance, the flying altitude
of the UAV may be increased, such that the agricultural UAV may be
able to increase the flying altitude along with the terrain when
operated in hills, slopes, terraces, etc. Accordingly, the normal
operation of the agricultural UAV may be ensured.
[0035] The present disclosure provides an obstacle-avoidance
control method for UAV. In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, when
the distance between the UAV and the front object is smaller than
the second safety distance, the flight trajectory of the UAV may be
adjusted, or the UAV may be controlled to stop flying in the flying
direction. In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, when the distance
between the UAV at the position A or the position B and the front
ground is smaller than the second safety distance, the flight
controller may adjust the flight trajectory of the UAV or control
the UAV to stop flying in the flying direction. In one embodiment,
as shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 6, obstacles such as trees, iron
towers, etc. are located in the front ground in the flying
direction of the UAV, and the altitude of such obstacles is often
greater than 8 meters. For illustrative purposes, FIG. 6
illustrates a tree as the obstacle 22. At the position B, the
distance d between the UAV and the obstacle 22 may be smaller than
a preset first safety distance and greater than a preset second
safety distance, then the flying altitude of the UAV at the
position B may be increased to reach the position C as shown in
FIG. 6. The distance d1 between the UAV at the position C and the
obstacle 22 may be smaller than the distance between the UAV at the
position B and the front ground. When d1 is smaller than the second
safety distance, the flight trajectory of the UAV may be adjusted,
or the UAV may be controlled to stop flying in the flying
direction.
[0036] The flight controller may adjust the flight trajectory of
the UAV in various ways. In one embodiment, the flight controller
may adjust the flight trajectory of the UAV by adjusting a heading
angle of the UAV, such that the flight trajectory of the UAV may be
configured to bypasses the front object. FIG. 7 is a schematic
diagram of adjusting a flying direction according to an embodiment
of the disclosure. As shown in FIG. 7, the reference number 30
represents a current position of the UAV, and the arrow 2
represents a current flying direction of the UAV. When the distance
d1 between the current position 30 and the front obstacle 22 is
smaller than the second safety distance, the heading angle of the
UAV may be adjusted. For example, the heading angle of the UAV may
be adjusted to deviate from the current flying direction, such that
the UAV may fly in the direction indicated by the arrow 3 and,
accordingly, a flight trajectory 31 of the UAV may bypass the
obstacle 22.
[0037] In another embodiment, the flight controller may adjust the
flight trajectory of the UAV by continuously increasing the
altitude of the UAV, such that the flight trajectory of the UAV may
pass over the front object. FIG. 8 is an application scenario of an
obstacle-avoidance control method for UAV according to an
embodiment of the disclosure. As shown in FIG. 8 and FIG. 7, the
altitude of the UAV at the position C may be continuously increased
to reach a position D. At the position D, the detecting direction
of the detecting device 21 may be no longer affected by the
obstacle 22. That is, after increasing the altitude of the UAV at
the position C, the obstacle 22 is desired to be no longer in the
detecting direction of the detecting device 21. As the UAV
continues flying forward from the position D, the flight trajectory
of the UAV may pass over the obstacle 22.
[0038] As shown in FIG. 8, the UAV rises from the position B to the
position C and from the position C to the position D, during which
the flying direction of the UAV may remain in a direction indicated
by the arrow 1 without any change. That is, when the flight
controller is increasing the flying altitude of the UAV, the flight
controller may control the UAV to continue flying in the flying
direction at the same time.
[0039] In certain embodiments, the flight controller may control
the UAV to stop flying in the flying direction when increasing the
flying altitude of the UAV. For example, at the position B or the
position C, the flight controller may control the UAV to stop
flying in the flying direction, for example, control the UAV to be
in a hovering state.
[0040] FIG. 9 is an application scenario of an obstacle-avoidance
control method for UAV according to an embodiment of the
disclosure. As shown in FIG. 9, the ground below the UAV may be a
terrace. Referring to FIG. 9 and FIG. 5, provided that an obstacle
22 such as a tree is in front of the flying direction of the UAV,
after the UAV is increased to the position C where the distance d1
between the UAV and the obstacle 22 is smaller than the second
safety distance, the flight controller may control the UAV to hover
at the position C. In one embodiment, the flight controller may
also adjust the heading angle of the UAV, as shown in FIG. 7. In
another embodiment, the flight controller may continuously increase
the flying altitude of the UAV to reach the position D, such that
the obstacle 22 is no longer in the detecting direction of the
detecting device 21.
[0041] In the disclosed embodiments, when the distance between the
UAV and the front object is smaller than the second safety
distance, the UAV may be prevented from colliding with the front
objects through adjusting the flight trajectory of the UAV or
controlling the UAV to stop flying in the original flight
direction. Thus, the safety of UAVs in flight may be improved,
especially when the UAVs are flying at low altitudes.
[0042] The present disclosure further provide a flight controller.
The flight controller may include one or more processors, which
work individually or cooperatively. The processor may be configured
to acquire a distance between an UAV and a front object in a flying
direction of the UAV, and control a flying altitude of the UAV
according to the acquired distance between the UAV and the front
object.
[0043] When the processor is configured to control the flying
altitude of the UAV according to the acquired distance between the
UAV and the front object, the processor may determine whether the
distance between the UAV and the front object is smaller than a
preset first safety distance and greater than a preset second
safety distance. In response to determine that the distance between
the UAV and the front object is smaller than the preset first
safety distance and greater than the preset second safety distance,
the process may control the UAV to increase the flying altitude,
thereby increasing the distance between the UAV and the front
object. The first safety distance may be greater than the second
safety distance.
[0044] As the flying altitude of the UAV increases, the distance
between the UAV and the front object may also increase, which
enables the distance between the UAV and the front object to be
greater than or equal to the first safety distance.
[0045] The principles and implementations of the flight controller
are similar to the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 and will not be
further described herein.
[0046] In the disclosed embodiments, the flying altitude of the UAV
may be controlled based on the distance between the UAV and the
front object. As the flying altitude of the UAV increases, the
distance between the UAV and the front object may increase. When
the UAV flies forward and the distance between the UAV and the
front object is smaller than a safety distance, the flying altitude
of the UAV may be increased, such that the agricultural UAV may be
able to increase the flying altitude along with the terrain when
operated in hills, slopes, terraces, etc. Accordingly, the normal
operation of the agricultural UAV may be ensured.
[0047] The present disclosure further provides a flight controller.
In particular, when the distance between the UAV and the front
object is smaller than the second safety distance, the processor
may adjust the flight trajectory of the UAV or control the UAV to
stop flying in the flying direction. In one embodiment, the
processor may control the UAV to increase the flying altitude and
to continue flying in the original flight direction at the same
time. In another embodiment, the processor may control the UAV to
increase the flying altitude and, meanwhile, control the UAV to
stop flying in the original flight direction.
[0048] The processor may adjust the flight trajectory of the UAV in
various ways. In one embodiment, the processor may adjust the
flight trajectory of the UAV by adjusting a heading angle of the
UAV, such that the flight trajectory of the UAV may be allowed to
bypass the front object. In another embodiment, the processor may
adjust the flight trajectory of the UAV by continuously increasing
the altitude of the UAV, such that the flight trajectory of the UAV
may pass over the front object.
[0049] In certain embodiments, when the processor controls the UAV
to stop flying in the flying direction as increasing the flying
altitude of the UAV, the processor may control the UAV to be in a
hovering state.
[0050] In addition, when the processor acquires the distance
between the UAV and the front object in the flying direction of the
UAV, the processor may be configured to detect the distance between
the UAV and the front object in the flying direction of the UAV via
a detecting device carried by the UAV. The detecting device may
include at least one of a radar sensor, an ultrasonic sensor, a TOF
ranging sensor, a visual sensor, or a laser sensor.
[0051] The principles and implementation manners of the flight
controller are similar to the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, and
details are not described herein again.
[0052] In the disclosed embodiments, when the distance between the
UAV and the front object is smaller than the second safety
distance, the UAV may be prevented from colliding with the front
objects through adjusting the flight trajectory of the UAV or
controlling the UAV to stop flying in the original flight
direction. Thus, the safety of UAVs in flight may be improved,
especially when the UAVs are flying at low altitudes.
[0053] The present disclosure further provides an UAV. FIG. 10 is a
structural diagram of an UAV according to an embodiment of the
disclosure. As shown in FIG. 10, the UAV 100 may include a
fuselage, a power system, a detecting device 21, and a flight
controller 118. In particular, the power system may include at
least one of a motor 107, a propeller 106 or an electronic governor
117. The power system may be mounted at the fuselage for providing
flight power. The detecting device 21 may be mounted at the
fuselage, and coupled to the flight controller 118 via a
communication connection. That is, the detecting device 21 may be
in communication with the flight controller 118. The detecting
device 21 may detect objects around the UAV and, more particular,
detect the distance between the UAV and the front object in the
flying direction of the UAV, and the vertical distance between the
ground below the detecting device 21 and the detecting device 21.
In addition, the detecting device 21 may transmit the detected
distance to the processor, such as the distance between the UAV and
the front object in the flying direction of the UAV, the vertical
distance between the ground below the detecting device 21 and the
detecting device 21, etc.
[0054] The flight controller 118 may be in communication with the
power system to control the UAV. In particular, the flight
controller 118 may include an inertial measurement unit (IMU) and a
gyroscope. The IMU and the gyroscope may be configured to detect,
for example, an acceleration, a pitch angle, a roll angle, and a
yaw angle of the UAV.
[0055] In addition, as shown in FIG. 10, the UAV 100 may further
include a communication system 110, a supporting device 102, and an
imaging device 104. The supporting device 102 may include a tripod
head, and the communication system 110 may include a receiver
configured to receive wireless signals transmitted by the antenna
114 at a ground station 112. The reference number 116 represents
the electromagnetic wave generated in the communication between the
receiver and the antenna 114.
[0056] The principles and implementation manners of the disclosed
flight controller are similar to the foregoing embodiments, and are
not described herein again.
[0057] In the disclosed embodiments, the flying altitude of the UAV
may be controlled based on the distance between the UAV and the
front object. As the flying altitude of the UAV increases, the
distance between the UAV and the front object may increase. When
the UAV flies forward and the distance between the UAV and the
front object is smaller than a safety distance, the flying altitude
of the UAV may be increased, such that the agricultural UAV may be
able to increase the flying altitude along with the terrain when
operated in hills, slopes, terraces, etc. Accordingly, the normal
operation of the agricultural UAV may be ensured.
[0058] The present disclosure further provides an UAV. FIG. 11 is a
structural diagram of an UAV according to an embodiment of the
disclosure. The similarities between FIG. 10 and FIG. 11 are not
repeated while certain difference may be explained.
[0059] As shown in FIG. 11, the detecting device 21 may include an
obstacle-avoidance sensor 211 and an altitude sensor 212. The
obstacle-avoidance sensor 211 may be in communication with the
flight controller 118 to sense a distance between the UAV and the
front object. The altitude sensor 212 may be in communication with
the flight controller 118 to sense the relative altitude of the UAV
from the ground.
[0060] The principles and implementation manners of the flight
controller are similar to the foregoing embodiments, and are not
described herein again.
[0061] In the disclosed embodiments, the distance between the UAV
and the front object may be detected by the obstacle-avoidance
sensor, and the relative altitude of the UAV from the ground may be
detected by the altitude sensor, such that the detection accuracy
may be improved as compared to detecting the distance between the
UAV and the front object as well as the relative altitude of the
UAV from the ground by a same detecting device.
[0062] In the several embodiments provided in the present
disclosure, it should be understood that the disclosed system,
apparatus, and method may be implemented in other manners. For
example, the described apparatus embodiment may be merely
exemplary. For example, the unit division may be merely a logical
function division and there may be other divisions in actual
implementation. For example, multiple units or components may be
combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be
ignored or not performed. In addition, the displayed or discussed
mutual couplings or direct couplings or communication connections
may be implemented through some interfaces. The indirect couplings
or communication connections between the apparatuses or units may
be implemented in electronic, mechanical or other forms.
[0063] The units described as separate parts may or may not be
physically separate, and parts displayed as units may or may not be
physical units, may be located in one position, or may be
distributed on multiple network units. A part or all of the units
may be selected according to an actual need to achieve the
objectives of the solutions in the embodiments of the present
disclosure.
[0064] In addition, functional units in the embodiments of the
present disclosure may be integrated into one processing unit, or
each of the units may exist alone physically, or two or more units
are integrated into one unit. The integrated unit may be
implemented in a form of hardware, or may be implemented in a form
of a software functional unit.
[0065] When the integrated unit may be implemented in a form of a
software functional unit and sold or used as an independent
product, the integrated unit may be stored in a computer-readable
storage medium. Based on such an understanding, the technical
solutions of the present disclosure essentially, or the part
contributing to the prior art, or all or a part of the technical
solutions may be implemented in a form of a software product. The
computer software product may be stored in a storage medium and may
include several instructions for instructing a computer device
(which may be a personal computer, a server, or a network device)
to perform all or a part of the steps of the methods described in
the embodiments of the present disclosure. The foregoing storage
medium may include any medium that can store program code, such as
a universal serial bus (USB) flash drive, a removable hard disk, a
read-only memory (ROM), a random-access memory (RAM), a magnetic
disk, or an optical disc.
[0066] The foregoing descriptions are merely specific
implementations of the present disclosure, but are not intended to
limit the scope of the present disclosure. Any equivalent variation
or replacement readily figured out by a person skilled in the art
within the technical scope disclosed in the present disclosure
shall fall within the scope of the present disclosure.
* * * * *